The new exhibition space will feature works of art from the collection of the local bank Kayha Galicia. This is the first building of this type for Nicolas Grimshaw and also his first project for Spain.
The gallery should become an important public center of the ancient city, as well as a space for events held by both the foundation and the bank.
The complex includes four permanent exhibition halls on the upper floors, temporary exhibition spaces and an auditorium on the lower levels, as well as an internet café and a bookstore on the ground floor.
The building has filled a "gap" in the historic quarter of the city; therefore, it was especially important to harmonize its design and height with the surrounding buildings. Differing requirements for the main and rear façades presented particular difficulty: the main façade of the building faces the port, it is glazed and seems weightless. At the back, its height is less, and there are almost no large glass surfaces (cladding with marble slabs dominates), so that the structure would be in harmony with the neighboring administrative buildings. At the same time, the building immediately attracts attention thanks to its modern and unusual solution.
In section, the gallery resembles a forward-leaning parabola. Its top is on the main facade. Its glass panels are embedded in a "lattice" of narrow and thin marble slabs that let in sunlight during the day. At night, the wall is slightly illuminated. A transparent holographic screen, suspended behind the glass, allows various images to be projected onto the façade related to the events taking place inside.
Two fully glazed elevators run along the plane of the façade, bringing visitors to the permanent exhibition halls.
The main component of the gallery's interior space is a glazed atrium that cuts the building along. It contains a staircase that looks like a sculptural object in the streams of sunlight.
