After more than a decade, EDDEA completes the Kaohsiung Pop Music Centre, now an icon of Taiwan’s coastline
In March 2025 the founding partners of EDDEA attended the official opening of the cultural complex in Taiwan’s second-largest city, which comprises 88,000 m² of facilities and has become one of the most visited public spaces since its technical opening in 2021.
More than a decade after winning the international competition, Luis Ybarra and José María de Cárdenas finally travelled to Kaohsiung to take part in the official ceremony for a project that has transformed the urban profile of Taiwan’s port waterfront. The Pop Music Centre, designed by EDDEA in collaboration with Manuel Monteserin, is one of the most ambitious cultural interventions in South Asia, both in scale and in its integration with the landscape.
The complex brings together open-air auditoriums, concert halls, retail areas, urban squares, food and drink venues and an extensive network of public green spaces in dialogue with the marine setting. Its defining architectural move is a spatial continuum between the interiors of the facilities and the outdoor spaces, creating landscape sequences that connect the established city with the waterfront.
“The project went through some truly difficult moments, because of its scale, institutional changes and the pandemic, but today we feel deeply proud”, explained Meng Hang, the architect who led local development for EDDEA in Taiwan. “The Pop Music Centre has transformed this part of the city, and having been part of that change is something we will always carry with us.”
The official visit, organised by the municipal authorities of Kaohsiung, allowed EDDEA’s management team to see in situ the urban and social impact of the project. The complex has recorded visitor numbers well above initial expectations, establishing itself as a leisure and cultural landmark for the inhabitants of Taiwan’s second most important metropolitan area.
Luis Ybarra highlighted the human dimension of the project: “It has been very moving to finally be here. This centre is not only an architectural achievement but a space that the people of the city live in and love. For us, that is what matters most.”
Construction was affected by pandemic restrictions, which forced a rethink of timetables and coordination protocols between the Spanish and Taiwanese technical teams. The technical complexity of the project also called for specialist development of materials and construction systems adapted both to the subtropical climate and to the acoustic demands of the music venues.
Since its technical opening in 2021, the Kaohsiung Pop Music Centre has proven its capacity for urban transformation, acting as a catalyst for new commercial and residential dynamics in its immediate surroundings. The project is part of a wider municipal strategy to revitalise the port waterfront, which seeks to position Kaohsiung as a cultural reference point on the Taiwan Strait.
EDDEA, founded by Luis Ybarra and José María de Cárdenas, has offices in Seville and Madrid and carries out architecture and urban planning projects both in Spain and internationally. The studio currently has several cultural and residential projects under way that build in sustainability and landscape integration.
