2nd prize. Competition for the new art museum and cultura quarter in Kristiansand Norway
The master plan includes a culture school, an art museum, offices and hotel facilities, all surrounding a large cultural square in front of the sea. The proposal rearranges the silo building and the museum rooms leaving the silo well visible with its original iconic appearance. Inside, a large vertical foyer becomes the pivoting centre of all the exhibition rooms of the museum.
The new cultural quarter in Kristiansand provides a transition between the old town, Kvadraturen, and the new Kanalbyen residential district.
The definition of an attractive urban pedestrian space and the enhancement of a symbolic and emotional link with the heritage of the industrial harbour and the silo building are the main goals of the competition proposal.
The project proposes to remove part of the silo building, which is an historical landmark of the city and an important document of the Norwegian industrial heritage, taking it back to its original iconic 1935 version, to find a harmonic relationship with the scale of the surroundings and to establish a large attractive urban square, the Kulturtorget. The built borders of the square will all be qualified with activities and functions to produce lively interactions between interior and exterior spaces, providing a basis for a strong synergy between activities and users; the entire masterplan project supports the idea of a very open and public system of buildings with smooth transitions between inside and outside, defining the area’s connection both with the city and the close surroundings.
The real essence of the silo, its simple sober aspect, connected with the overall industrial appearance, are sampled and reused in the project to give the museum a unique aspect.
The project proposes to remove 6 rows of silos and its corresponding warehouse volume, and to empty some of the remaining ones to arrange the interior space as a foyer that celebrates the silo structures and its verticality, providing the museum an impressive atrium with the potential of being used as an exhibition space for site-specific art installations or performances. The construction of a new square-shaped building and the re-arrangement of the old warehouse complete the layout of the new museum.
In the foyer, a central large sculptural stair leads the visitor to the first floor, where the exhibition starts.
In order to offer flexibility to the exhibition layout, galleries are spread over three floors, giving the visitor a diverse range of spaces and volumes to experience, that vary in proportions, in height and in daylighting.
