Architects Pacific won an international competition to become the architects for a new headquarters in Noumea. Our winning scheme was founded on the imagery of sailing the Pacific. A Micronesian navigational stick chart was used as inspiration during the concept planning.
A major reference to the maritime context of the Pacific nations is the form of the conference centre, symbolising an upturned hull of an outrigger canoe.
Traditional boat building techniques were incorporated into the construction process; the curved feature wall of the conference centre is planking stitched with coconut husk fibre, crafted by Kiribati canoe builders.