Bjarke Ingels: 'Dinosaur' new stadiums are 'all the same'

by Kim Megson | 15 Sep 2016

Ingels said 'the same three or four global offices have designed all the stadiums' / Jonas Bie

Danish architect Bjarke Ingels has said that modern-day stadiums lack individuality and called for more design studios to be given the opportunity to design sports facilities.

Speaking in an interview with Rolling Stone, the BIG founder said “stadiums are just a total dinosaur”.

"It's the same three or four global offices that have designed all the stadiums,” he said. “Then it becomes this self-fulfilling prophecy, where you have to be a stadium designer to design a stadium. And that means they're all the same."

Ingels was talking to the magazine about his experience of designing the proposed new stadium for US National Football League franchise the Washington Redskins – BIG’s first stadium project.

Described by the Redskins as “a new stadium concept”, the design includes a series of unorthodox features such as a moat for kayaking and surfing; man-made beaches; abseiling ropes descending from the walls; and a grass covered parking lot that encourages spectators to organise communal pre-game picnics from their vehicles.

Ingels’ vision for the stadium has attracted criticism from some quarters, with Twitter users questioning the need for such amenities and the likelihood of BIG delivering the vision presented in the renderings.

However, the architect told The Washington Post in March that stadiums should have multiple uses because “it is a waste of resources to have giant facilities that are only active 10 times a year.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Ingels defended himself against accusations that the reason for his success is his ability to promote headline-grabbing concepts.

He said: "I think the biggest backhanded criticism-compliment I get is that I'm 'good at communicating.' Which implies that you're bad at doing. To me, it's a strength that there's clarity. We know what we're doing, and that's why we can also explain it. The fact that something is actually understandable and relatable doesn't mean that it's unsophisticated or banal. It just means that it's crystal-clear.

“If you can't explain it, that doesn't necessarily mean it's so brilliant that ordinary mortals can't fathom it. It might just mean that it makes no sense."