Hilbert’s Hotel will celebrate the presence of visitors in the city, while promoting qualities of this specific site, such as the connection to water
– Kjetil T. Thorsen

Norwegian architecture firm Snøhetta has been announced as the winner of a competition to design a new hotel on Helsinki’s Hakaniemi waterfront.

The decision was announced on 1 February 2017 during a press conference held by the competition organisers; the City of Helsinki, Finnish real estate company AB Invest and the Finnish Association of Architecture.

The winning design is for Hilbert’s Hotel, which is named for David Hilbert’s 1924 paradoxical thought experiment.

The hotel is intended to become a local landmark for both guests and residents. It will have a public thoroughfare leading to the waterfront and a plaza featuring a number of bars and restaurants.

Hotel rooms will be elevated above the plaza and covered in smooth white glass panels set in a modular repeated pattern.

The panels are designed to give the appearance of broken sea glass, further enhancing the connection between the hotel and the waterfront, and will contrast against the surrounding urban architecture.

Snøhetta co-founder Kjetil T. Thorsen said: "The city of Helsinki and AB Invest CEO, Arthur Burchardt, are the best possible partners in the realisation of a building Helsinki deserves. Snøhetta is thrilled to be contributing to the city's vast architectural heritage. Hilbert’s Hotel will celebrate the presence of visitors in the city, while promoting qualities of this specific site, such as the connection to water.”

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