Hasta La Ideas

This maple-veneered staircase twists and turns between the floors of an Olympic Museum in Georgia refurbished by UK and Georgia firm Architects of Invention.

The architects created openings in the interior walls of the four-storey building to connect the new staircase with exhibitions and other rooms on the upper levels.

A new reception desk was also added as part of the renovation, which features a large fissure that makes it look like it’s been sawn in two.

Other projects we’ve featured in Georgia include a knobbly observation tower and a new international airport.

You can also see more stories about staircases here.

Photography is by Nakanimamasakhlisi Photo Lab, Nika Mdivani and I. Kopocova.

The text below was written by Architects of Invention:

National Olympic Commettee House 
Tbilisi, Georgia 2011

This work represents the idea of dynamics in sport with the abstract compositions of the staircase and the reception table.

The first object you encounter is the introverted desk with its never-ending fissure, and then you meet the extroverted staircase – like the open path to Olympus, where the summit meets its own reflection, inferring that striving never ends, that there is no limit to human achievement.

The building was built at the end of the XIX century for a private investor and it was later used as the residence of one of the leaders of the Communist party.

Later it was renovated in the 1960′s for government purposes and remained untouched until this year.

The structure was reinforced at the basement level which allowed us to make significant openings in the walls of the upper stories and place the staircase so it shifted from one space to another thus penetrating the structure.

The staircase was constructed on a steel base with MDF panels and it was finished with maple veneer. The steps and the side railings were made from the same wood.

The staircase was completed in three months.

Project – Office Building Interior
Status – Completed

Location – 22 Machabeli str. Tbilisi, Georgia
Program – Olympic Museum, Geonoch Offices

Building Area – 3000m2
Budget – 1m USD

Credits: Niko Japaridze, Gogiko Sakvarelidze, Nika Maisuradze, Dato Tsanava, Viliana Guliashvili, Ivane Ksnelashvili, David Dolidze, Soso Eliava, Devi Kituashvili PM, Eka Japaridze