Following its reveal back in 2020, Sydney Fish Market is now almost complete. The building has been fitted with an ambitious timber roof that's designed to resemble fish scales and weighs 2,500 tons.
The Sydney Fish Market is designed by Danish studio 3XN – in collaboration with BVN, GXN Innovation, and Aspect Studios – and is part of a larger scheme to revitalize the city's Blackwattle Bay.
It's the roof which is its most impressive feature: with a length of 200 m (656 ft), its structure is composed of 594 glulam (glued laminated wood) roof beams – with the longest beams stretching up to 32 m (104 ft) – topped by aluminum panels, which are the parts designed to look like fish scales.
The roof's installation took a couple of years and required three cranes, which would raise timber sections weighing the equivalent of roughly 17 passenger cars, and place them into position. In addition to all that timber and aluminum, the roof has integrated solar panels, which will help reduce its power draw on the grid, in addition to a rainwater collection system for irrigation. It also features skylights that allow indirect light to illuminate the interior's upper levels. It's certainly an impressive design and Multiplex says it's the largest of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere.
Though the fish market is now nearing completion, there's still a little work left to do. The roof requires some finishing touches including waterproofing, which will follow in the weeks ahead.
Additionally, the interior needs to be finished too. This will feature lots of natural light thanks to the skylights already mentioned, plus a transparent facade made up of aluminum and glass, with glazed louvers. It also has an open and flexible layout and is flanked by public plazas. It's set to open in the coming months.
"This building will serve many functions when it is completed: a vibrant fish market, an attractive amenity for the city, a cultural destination, an urban connector, and an inspiring icon along the world-renowned Sydney Harbour," explains Kim Herforth Nielsen, Founding Partner and Creative Director, 3XN.