Parliament House, Malta

Parliament House, Malta

post modern architecture

The Maltese Parliament House is characteristic of post modern architecture's reception and purpose. It's somewhat a functional classicist take with its hulking limestone exteriors, symmetrically covering up two separate buildings on stilts with 3 layers of floors each. The term brutalism might also be synonymous with the structure considering the box like exterior but the facade is rhetorically less aggressive with the honey comb (or cheese grater like) inlays/indentation that streak the limestone exteriors. The honey comb motif extends to the parliament chamber as well with post modern license on classicism because it's supposed that Malta derives from melite (which means honey), and this architecture pays homage to that.
Although it is a relatively new building, the limestone faced is aged or cured to seem more aged than it actually is. The interior is focused on functionalism yet it has been endlessly criticized for its honey comb motif.

Renzo Piano

Mike Schmitt

February 2 2020

Still Image