Cultural Continuity in Timber: LSG Solutions’ Terminal Design for Mestia Airport
A New Gateway Woven with History: LSG Solutions’ Terminal Design for Mestia Airport
Nestled in the mountainous terrain of Georgia’s Svaneti region, LSG Solutions’ Terminal Design for Mestia Airport redefines infrastructure as a vessel of national narrative. The 2,000-square-metre timber terminal, envisioned by Tbilisi-based multidisciplinary firm LSG Solutions, merges symbolism and structure into a single-story, open-plan layout that functions as both transportation hub and cultural monument.
Led by an all-Georgian team of in-house architects, engineers, and consultants, the design pays tribute to Queen Tamar — a revered 12th-century monarch whose legacy marks Georgia’s Golden Age. The design seeks not merely to serve passengers, but to immerse them in a spatial retelling of national identity, blending past glory with present innovation.
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Timber as Narrative: Weaving Culture into Form
The core architectural language of the terminal is established through a rhythmic timber structure — large wooden beams, supporting frames, and a grid-patterned roof form the foundation. Yet this isn’t merely structure; it’s a reinterpretation of ceremonial attire, with motifs embedded in the patterns of Queen Tamar’s royal garments.
As Nino Grigolashvili, lead designer, noted:
“It is very symbolic that an airport named after Queen Tamar – a female monarch – is being designed by women.”
These feminist and cultural nuances are not subtle flourishes but integral to the building’s identity, offering a spatial homage that turns arrival into ritual.
Open Interiors and Skylit Experiences
The terminal features an open-plan layout that fluidly merges departure and arrival zones, fostering spatial clarity. Expansive floor-to-ceiling glazed facades wrap around the building, ensuring a visual connection to the surrounding Svaneti landscape. Above, large square skylights with heated glass allow daylight to pour through, uniting interior with exterior in a soft wash of natural light.
These skylights are not just practical — they’re symbolic of the architectural clarity LSG Solutions brings to a typically utilitarian typology. Where many terminals overwhelm with signage and barriers, this design offers calmness through openness.
Local Materiality with Lasting Effect
LSG Solutions emphasizes the use of locally sourced timber, paired with stone-clad walls and grey-toned flooring. This palette roots the terminal in its terrain, resisting any imported aesthetic that would diminish the region’s unique identity.
Lighting design follows the building’s geometry, using discreet strip lights that trace the ceiling lines and enhance the rhythm of the timber grid. The subtle interplay of natural and artificial lighting ensures an immersive but functional space — where orientation, mood, and visual coherence remain in balance.
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This terminal project by LSG Solutions stands as a landmark of architectural storytelling within civic infrastructure. The thoughtful translation of Queen Tamar’s legacy into form and pattern imbues the design with symbolic richness. However, while the structure evokes national pride, it must also withstand the rigorous demands of airport functionality — a test of form meeting service. Still, its celebration of local materials and cultural continuity offers a powerful model for regionally embedded architecture.
A New Era of Terminal Typologies
More than a transit space, LSG Solutions’ Terminal Design for Mestia Airport asserts that airports can reflect identity and history as clearly as they enable mobility. The terminal’s win in a national competition against 17 firms is a testament to its spatial logic, cultural sensitivity, and engineering clarity.
As construction is set to begin this year, the project also signals an emerging architectural confidence in Georgia’s infrastructure — one that doesn’t mimic global trends but grows from within its own traditions.
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