The design of the new entrance to the Grisons parliament building provides the

building itself and the institution it houses with a suitable identity and a

sumptuous, refined character. The idea is to allow all visitors with or without

disabilities to access the building in the same way naturally and comfortably.

The stony part of the new building is made of white, monolithic, in situ

concrete, while the railing is made of massive bronze. The white concrete is

composed of white cement, white sand and gray gravel from the local area. The

walking surfaces have been sanded down and roughened.

From the square on the south side a ramp leads to the pre-existing entrance

door. The proportions of the base and the room height are classically

monumental and imbue the entrance with a public and festive character. The

roof stretches out over the ramp and has a width of 18 metres, an area of 70

square metres and a weight of 90 tons. This heavy element is only supported by

a thin pillar and by a “hanging column”. The impression of heaviness lends the

space under the roof a sense of interiority and protection. The simultaneity of

exposed and hidden forces results in a somewhat unreal character.

Entrance to the Grisons Parliament building

The “hanging column” stands next to the entrance door and leads the visitor

inside the building. It barely touches the ramp and seems to hang from the roof.

Slightly rotated out of the surrounding geometry, it stands on the highest point of

the base and seems to continue rotating. It playfully balances the apparently

weightless roof, as if gravity did not exist.