Over and Under: Redefining the Museum Path, Part 1
Photograph by Julian Salinas
New structures often bring insightful reinterpretation to their surroundings, allowing us to see old places in new ways. Two recently completed expansion projects in Switzerland have transformed familiar urban places into invigorating spatial experiences. A museum addition in Basel and another in Zurich, both by Christ and Gantenbein, propose artful solutions to complex site conditions. These buildings combine the accuracy of Swiss engineering with the architects’ fertile imaginations with surprising results.
Kunstmuseum
Basel’s annex to the Kunstmuseum is located across the street from the original 1930’s quasi-fascist building. Christ and Gantenbein’s design navigates the impossible coupling of these two buildings with a below grade spatial narrative that entirely engages ones imagination. The new building has its own entry and lobby but I highly recommend entry from the old building where a monumental stair descends from the ground floor.
Under the street, a series of bright galleries with surprisingly tall ceilings make you forget you are underground. My first impression was the astounding accuracy of everything. Exposed air ducts are crafted with the precision of a Swiss watch and industrial light tubes that are tucked into the beams are perfectly aligned like the Judd sculptures below.
Photograph by Stefano Graziani
The surface materials and details express palpable contrasts with the same exactness. Carefully detailed galvanized metal railings, elevators and doors are juxtaposed with polished marble, concrete, scraped plaster and wood. Curiously, this amalgam of materials is able to maintain an honest simplicity that does not compete with the art.
One exception is the building’s crescendo, a seductive marble stairway ascending into the new building. It curves upward in an asymmetrical spiral so that each turn is a new visual treat. A skylight at the top creates an eerie glow over the experience.
Spatially, the new building is an extension of the old, though from the city’s perspective the buildings appear separate. The new facade, is a roughly chiseled edifice that recalls the banding of the original Kunstmuseum, but having the rawness of Rome‘s ancient brick structures. It has a quiet grey presence with the solidity of an Alp.
Photograph by Julian Salinas
In a polite nod to its surrounds, an indentation occurs where the Rittergasse intersects the building. Two-thirds up the facade, a frieze of LED lighting is embedded in its brick coursing. Programmed announcements that appear to be subtly printed on the wall are visible from the original museum across the street, another nod. Though clearly from different eras, these two buildings seem to speak to one another.
Thoughts of this subtle but powerful museum visit have remained with me. During a recent visit to the MOMA, I was hyperaware of the building’s down-market circulation experience. As I jostled against the bathroom lines to access the crowded escalators that ride alongside sheetrock walls, I fondly recalled my trip through the Kunstmuseum.
Audrey Matlock leads the design of her eponymous New York firm. Her career began as an artist designing large-scale mixed media environments and museum exhibits. This seminal work led her to pursue a career in architecture. Today her work designing buildings and urban spaces worldwide combines her artistic and architectural passion. Matlock was awarded fellowship into the American Institute of Architects, recognized as an Emerging Voice by the Architectural League, awarded the American Institute of Architects Vice Presidential Citation for Design Excellence and was just named by The New York Times as one of the twelve architects whose buildings are shaping New York today. Her firm has won over sixty design awards.
Photographs by Audrey Matlock unless otherwise noted.
Find more at www.audreymatlock.com
