FEATURED ON
Design Boom

Set beside the off-ramp of Cairo’s 6th of October Bridge, Pergola is a ten-metre-tall outdoor theatre and community arts space in Giza. Developed by THISS Studio as a bold civic landmark, the project transforms a small urban park into a platform for performance, gathering and public life.

Conceived as a direct architectural response to its context, Pergola stands in deliberate visual opposition to the billboards and infrastructure that dominate the surrounding bridge. Its vivid red form asserts a strong civic presence within an increasingly privatised urban landscape, reclaiming attention for culture, dialogue and collective use. We designed the structure not simply as a venue, but as an urban marker: a space that draws people in, frames collective activity, and gives new visibility to the public realm.

Material experimentation was central to the project. We developed the architectural language around recycled waste plastic, using it to produce floor tiles, shading devices and striking red wall elements that define the identity of the space. By turning discarded material into a robust and expressive building system, the project demonstrates how circular construction methods can shape a new architectural language for Cairo: one that is resourceful, low-carbon and rooted in local conditions.

The design was informed by an extended co-design process with local residents, students and park stakeholders, allowing the project to respond directly to the needs and ambitions of its users. Through workshops, conversations and model-making, we developed a proposal that is both highly visible and deeply grounded in its social context.

Pergola opened as a major new setting for cultural programming and continues to function as a space for performance, exchange and environmental awareness. Both landmark and gathering space, it reflects our interest in architecture as a public act: creating structures that are spatially ambitious, materially inventive and socially embedded.

CREDITS
Partners - CLUSTER: Cairo, Orient Productions
Photography - Georges & Samuel Mohsen – The GS Studio
Client - Art Jameel, British Council
Material Suppliers - ReBlox, VeryNile, TileGreen
Main contractor - Rabee el Hany and Mohammed Abdul Azm