Iceland’s KEF International Airport is imagined as an architectural rendering of a fjord — a stream with angular cliffs on either side. Embedded into the landscape, the central building (the “stream,” if you will) takes its inspiration from the traditional Icelandic turf house. This wending, low-slung volume, made of concrete and steel and capped with a green roof, is flanked by two concourses (the “cliffs”) modelled on Nordic fish-drying racks. Beneath their dramatic A-frame roof structures, the suspended mezzanines hover above the arrival and departure zones, allowing travellers to witness landings and takeoffs. Truly unique: the program of museums, libraries, rock-climbing gyms and aurora borealis viewing stations that transform this airport of the future from a travel node into a vibrant place to linger.

Project KEF International Airport School North Carolina State University, U.S. Team Austin Corriher and Caroline Cox