Serlachius Museum Gösta
The complex competition program and landscape values have been taken as major constraints in the proposal for the Serlachius Museum Gösta’s Extension.
The competition brief asked for a gross area of 4.700 sqm, with precise demands in terms of flexibility, connections and functional objectives. At the same time, the views towards lake Melasjärvi and in the Taavetinsaari direction constituted a constant reference for the overall proposal.
The proposal could be conceptually subdivided in to 3 main elements:
- the plinth
- the cross
- the roof
PAVILION STRATEGY A new datum: the plinth
The main concept was to establish a new datum: a continuous horizontal surface set at +108.00 m that, by cantilevering over the existing topography, would frame and enhance the powerful landscape views. In order to minimize heat loss, the shape of a square was used for the new datum. Its dimensions were directly defined by the gross area indicated in the brief. Once the datum has been laid down over the landscape, it becomes a plinth on which to arrange the given program.
The plinth is not aligned with the existing museum facade but moved forward, towards the road. This operation creates a rectangular paved square in front of the manor’s building, amplifying the historical values of the brick facade and establishing a new space for the visitor to socialize and appreciate the new extension.
On the Melasjärvi side, the plinth cantilevers over the landscape creating an open but covered square that frames the view toward the lake. This space could be used as restaurant’s deck during summer and as a location for open air exhibitions.
THE CROSS facilities vs. Museum spaces
The brief asked for 4 functional entities. For each functional entity, the detailed room programme has been subdivided into “museum spaces” and “facilities”. Museum spaces are rooms and areas that need to be representative and flexible. They are the cores of the new building both for the visitors and museum professionals. Facilities are intended as spaces and rooms that serve the museum spaces, allowing them to function and evolve.
At the same time the main goal was to free the extension’s facades from any structural element to enhance the relation with the existing landscape, allowing at the same time great cantilevers (20 m) on the lake’s side.
We decided to use a typological solution based on the cross.
The cross includes all the facilities and smoothly connects them back to the relative museum spaces.
The cross subdivide the square in 4 quadrants, each for the 4 functional entities. Connections between the quadrants are marked by opening in the concrete mass of the cross. A central spiral staircase leads down to level +103 m, where the cross looses one arm and house all the mechanical equipment and other facilities. The acces to the spiral staircase is made by carving an opening in the concrete, both toward the foyer space and toward the restaurant area.
The cross is also the element of connection to the existing bulding, extending with a glass element out of the plinth shape and reaching the 108.40 level of the actual museum.
The cross become the structural core, supporting the roof and freeing the facade form structural elements. The cantilevers are hung from the roof by a slender Vierendeel truss on the east and west side. The view towards the lake is free and framed by the long transparent facade.The cross hosts also the mechanical main ducts, coming from the basement, creating an infrastructural spine for the all museum.
FOYER & ASSEMBLY HALL
The first quadrant (top-left) is the foyer and assembly hall. Porosity and flexibility are pursued by means of a totally open and free space. Facilities (ticket sale and shop, shop storage, property control room and cloack room) are all contained in the cross freeing the quadrant from any other volume. To mark the public and social function of the foyer, the facade toward the road is step back, creating a useful canopy during winter times and leaving space to a gently slope that connects the entrance back to the new square.
EXHIBITION SPACES
The second quadrant (top-right) houses the exhibition spaces. The 1.000 sqm surface is divided only by two partitions to separate travelling exhibitions from permanent collections. A clear an loop circulation is created while plain and straight walls allow for an easy mounting of temporary exhibitions. Travelling exhibitions spaces can be easily closed and separated from collections ones. To satisfy the UV radiation requirements, the main travelling space uses a system of microshed with integrated artifical lighting. Facades are totally opaque and use a ventilated system.
OFFICES & ART STORAGE
The 3rd quadrant is home for offices and collections’ treatment and storage facilties.
The cross arm between 2nd and 3rd quadrant hosts the handling space which is connected both to the exhibition room and the art storage. A service entrance is also provided.
From the handling you have full access to the 3 areas of archives, artwok storage and conservation. These functions are considered as “boxes” in the “box”, formally detached from the cross but functionally connected. The “ring” around these spaces give acces to staff facilties, toilets and staff room. The remaining area of the quadrant is for offices, arranged as open fully transparent enclosures of 12 sqm. The living area occupies the corner of the quadrant with a stunning view towards Taavetinsaari. The two open offices and the bigger ones are raised over the collections’ treatment “box”.
A triple insulating glazing unit provides the transparent facade with excellent thermal insulation. A prismatic pane in the outermost air-gap reflects the solar radiation in summer and transmits it in winter. Where need a PCM heat storage module, equivalent to a storage capacity of about 20 cm concrete, is added in the inner air-gap.
PEDAGOGY AND RESTAURANT
The restaurant occupies the 4th quadrant. A square patio functions as the core around which all the table are arranged. Kitchen and restaurant storage are hidden in the cross. The pedagogy room and its backspace are treated as a separate functional volume. This box creates the necessary distribution for the toilets and auxiliary room, positioned in the cross arm.
THE ROOF A 3D CANOPY
The roof acts as a “canopy” resting over the cross and covering the quadrants.
Starting from the program requirement of having a 9m high room for travelling exhibitions, the canopy has been modeled as a series of pitched roofs. Each quadrant has its own peculiar roof treatment according to the functions it houses.
The foyer roof has been raised to level +123, creating a big skylight taht carves the roof and highlight the entrance.The roof of exhibition spaces is modeled with microshed to control UV radiation. In the 4th quadrant, the patio pierce the roof establishing a direct connection with the sky and landscape beneath.
To mark the sanwich-like structure of the pavillion, a metal panel cladding system is used for the roof, creating a contionuos ventilated surface that merges with the colors of the sky.
