Visitor center of Chillon Castle, Veytaux, Switzerland

Competition 2013

It is a proposal based primarily on landscaping and territorial restructuring that is not limited only to the architectural object itself. The object is to reinforce, within a clear and essential restructuration, the emergence of the castle’s architecture into the landscape. The main pathway and its lake views are improved, the closeness to the railroad is softened, and the value of discovering the Castle form the pathway is accentuated.

The new service building is not an obstacle in the pathway or the castle’s entrance. Instead, it is a means to improving its surrounding areas: It is part of the platform of the park that surrounds the castle, from which the isolated pavilion emerges. It is located at the same height as the old garden and provides a new square over its roof that serves as an advantage point and that can be accessed from the pathway. The building is not meant to remain unseen, the idea is that it is recognizable but with lines than blend into the environment and reinforce the horizontal quality of the platform and, at the same time, with veiled formal references to some elements, such as the barbicans that used to be placed at the feet of the castles. The cafeteria and the store are located under the new square and can be accessed through a staircase protected by a canopy roof that is in direct dialogue with the castle’s bridge and the existing bazaar.

The cafeteria and its deck open themselves to the surrounding landscape of the lake and the castle.

Authors: Linazasoro&Sánchez Arquitectura
Collaborators: Hugo Sebastián de Erice, Sergi Artola