OMA recently unveils its design for the major restoration and redefinition of one of Venice’s largest and most iconic buildings: the ‘Fondaco dei Tedeschi’, a property owned by the Benetton family, adjacent to the Rialto Bridge on the Grand Canal.
First constructed in 1228, the ‘Fondaco dei Tedeschi’ began as a trading post for German merchants and became a customs house under Napoleon in 1806. Its use as a post office has diminished in recent years, leaving much of the building unused and inaccessible for the first time in centuries. The latest evolution of the Fondaco will create a thriving contemporary trading post in the form of a culturally-programmed department store. (more…)
