Spanish studio EMBT has completed the Naples Underground Central Station, and its undulating timber roof stands out sharply against the glass and concrete of Naples’ Centro Direzionale. The project is shortlisted in the Infrastructure and transport category of the Dezeen Awards 2026.
The business district was laid out in the 1970s by Japanese architect Kenzo Tange. Its reflective skyscrapers and open piazzas form a tightly planned modernist zone that sits apart from the older fabric of the city.
A plaza in place of a hidden entrance
The 10,000-square-metre building replaces a previously understated metro entrance. In its place, the design introduces a public plaza that connects more directly with the surrounding streets.
Timber is doing similar work at a much smaller scale, as a lightweight canopy that makes public space feel more livable. Vibrant timber pavilion sparking DIY summer shade shows how wood can soften a hard urban setting, and it is worth a look.
Responding to an “artificial” district
During construction, EMBT founder Benedetta Tagliabue told Dezeen that the curving canopy responds to what she called the “artificial” feel of the Centro Direzionale. She described the district’s logic in more detail in 2021.
“Kenzo Tange designed Centro Direzionale, and he built a very Kenzo Tange-type of city with reflective skyscrapers and a piazza, very 1970s, very clean,” Tagliabue said. “It didn’t work because it’s so different from the rest of Naples.”
She said the new station was meant to bring a piece of nature and a piece of older Naples into that setting, linking it to the new subway line.
Glulam arches shaped like a forest
The roof is built from glue-laminated timber, or glulam, which is engineered wood formed into structural arches and beams. Some of these elements are partly supported by the existing concrete structure. Beneath them, the floor is finished in local Etna and Trani limestone.
Tagliabue said the branching columns were designed to evoke “walking through a forest.” The forms also reference the arched roofs common in railway station architecture. The roof follows the geometry of the tracks below, so a part of the infrastructure usually hidden underground takes visible shape above ground.
“We wanted the everyday experience of catching a train to feel more natural and welcoming, giving people a sense of being at home in the middle of the city,” Tagliabue said.
She added that timber suited a neighbourhood dominated by glass and concrete. Its warmth and texture, she said, restore a connection with nature in a place that lacks one.
Timber and concrete also pair well in a home that answers its surroundings, as seen in a Latin American house. Buenos Aires home blending timber and concrete shows how both materials can bring nature closer to built form.
The vaulted canopy covers the ticket barriers and access routes. It also extends onto the new paved plaza on either side. The plaza faces a church to the north and includes new planting to the south.
Pompeian colour inside the naples underground central station
Below ground, the platforms are lined with striped panels in bold red, orange and yellow. The palette draws on Pompeian frescoes, and the theme carries up to the surface in colourful silhouettes.
Tagliabue explained that the station is not directly above archaeological remains, so the team introduced its own references to the city’s history. “The reds and yellows recall Pompeii, and figures appear and disappear across the surfaces,” she said.
Elsewhere in Naples, Anish Kapoor and AL_A previously designed two sculptural station entrances, one in weathered steel and one in aluminium, to link the underground network with the Traiano district.
“I like the idea that a station can offer these unexpected encounters: along the way, you discover something about the city and feel more connected to it,” Tagliabue said.
Via dezeen.com
Frequently asked questions
Who designed the Naples Underground Central Station?
The Naples Underground Central Station was designed by Spanish studio EMBT. Its founder, Benedetta Tagliabue, described the design’s reasoning to Dezeen.
What material is the wavy roof of the Naples station made from?
The roof is made from glue-laminated timber, or glulam, which is engineered wood formed into structural arches and beams. Some of these elements are partly supported by the existing concrete structure.
Why does the Naples station have a curving timber roof?
The curving canopy responds to the ‘artificial’ feel of the Centro Direzionale, the 1970s business district designed by Kenzo Tange. Tagliabue said the station was meant to bring a piece of nature and older Naples into that setting.
What inspired the colours inside the Naples Underground Central Station?
The platforms are lined with striped panels in bold red, orange and yellow, and the palette draws on Pompeian frescoes. Because the station is not directly above archaeological remains, the team introduced its own references to the city’s history.
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