From Memory to New Public Life: The Pyramid of Tirana by MVRDV & iRI Architecture

Q: What ideas or values are central to your architectural practice, and how are they reflected in The Pyramid of Tirana at this stage of your studio’s development?

A: At iRI, we see architecture as a process of dialogue and collaboration. Every project brings together different ambitions, constraints and forms of knowledge, and we believe that the quality of the result depends greatly on the quality of this process. Our role is not only to provide technical solutions, but also to keep the architectural idea and the values of a project visible throughout its development.

The Pyramid of Tirana reflects this approach very clearly. We joined the project from its early stages, bringing our knowledge of the building, the city and the local context into a continuous dialogue with MVRDV. Our involvement continued through design development, detailing and construction, working between the existing structure, the new programme, technical requirements and the many stakeholders involved.

The project also taught us a lot about working with what is already there. Rather than replacing the existing building or reconstructing what had been lost, the intervention works with its structure, material presence and history, while giving it a completely new public life.

For iRI, the Pyramid represents an important moment in the development of our practice. It demonstrates how collaboration can generate knowledge in both directions, and how a local practice can contribute not simply by implementing an idea, but by actively shaping the process through which an architectural concept becomes part of the city.

Q: How do you see contemporary Albanian architecture today, and which local conditions, traditions or transformations are shaping its development?

A: Albanian architecture today is strongly shaped by the rapid changes taking place across the country. Tirana in particular has experienced an intense process of urbanisation and densification over the last three decades. At the same time, tourism, infrastructure, investment and growing international interest are transforming not only our cities, but also coastlines, villages and landscapes.

This creates many opportunities for architecture, but also many questions. We are constantly working between development and preservation, between the need for transformation and the need to recognise what is already there and has value. In Albania, this is not only about architectural heritage in the traditional sense. It is also about memory, landscape, informal development, patterns of everyday life and the relationships people have established with places over time.

I think one of the important questions for architecture today is therefore how to work with these existing conditions rather than simply replacing them. Development does not always have to begin from a blank page. What is already there—buildings, landscapes, communities, materials and memories—can become a resource for new projects.

International architects have also played an important role in Albania’s recent development, bringing different experiences, perspectives and ambitions. These collaborations are most valuable when they become a real exchange: when international experience is combined with a deep understanding of local conditions, and when both sides contribute to the architectural thinking behind a project.

Q: What opportunities and challenges do you believe will define the next chapter of Albanian architecture, and what role do you hope a new generation of practices such as yours will play in shaping it?

A: Perhaps the greatest opportunity and challenge is the speed and scale at which Albania is developing. Decisions being made today will have consequences for our cities and landscapes for decades. Architecture therefore has to respond not only to immediate demands, but also to questions of public space, environmental responsibility, heritage and long-term collective value.

Architects may not determine investments, political decisions or development strategies, but we still have agency within these processes. Through design, we can ask questions, bring different interests into conversation and keep values present that are not always easily measured.

For iRI, this also means looking beyond the boundaries of an individual project. A building may have a client, a budget and a property line, but its effects extend beyond all three. It becomes part of a neighbourhood, a landscape and a shared experience of a place. We believe architectural responsibility begins with recognising these wider effects.

As Albania continues to develop, it is important that architects of different generations have the space to take an active role in this process. International collaborations have brought valuable knowledge and experience, and our own practice has grown through many of these exchanges. At the same time, it is important that local architects get increasingly involved not only in developing and delivering projects, but also in initiating ideas, leading design processes and taking responsibility for the architectural vision behind them.