The architecture of this new centre was intended as an expression of the cultural origins of the native Melanesian people of New Caledonia in the South Pacific. It was also seen as a means of supporting their search for identity. Situated in an area of great natural beauty on a peninsula roughly 10 km from Nouméa, the capital, the complex is strung out along a slightly curving route 230 meters long. On one face, the strip is oriented to the wind and the storm-tossed sea; on the other face, to the tranquil waters of a lagoon. The individual buildings, which contain a wide range of cultural facilities, seek to forge a link between tradition and modernism.