nelson mandela cruise terminal

Conceived as a portal to the City of Durban and Kingdom of the Zulus, this new Ocean Terminal is the primary facility serving cruise ships on the eastern seaboard of Southern Africa. Displaying an overt African identity, the construct is a powerful urban landmark on the port’s harbour edge and by architectural contrast, interfaces provocatively with historic precinct neighbours opposite. Sculpted recesses erode the dominant angular form to create a vast cantilevered entrance canopy and to reveal interior framed views of docked ocean liners anchoring alongside. The triangulated terracotta envelope evokes a highly contextual quality which will hopefully serve to contribute as a catalyst to future water from development in the city