WARSAW MUSEUM OF MODERN ART
CLIENT: WARSAW MUNICIPALITY SIZE: 35,000 m 2 LOCATION: WARSAW, POLAND COLLABORATORS: CAVI – CENTRE FOR ADVANCED VISUALIZATION AND INTERACTION, AKT, LOUISIANA MUSEUM OF MODERN ART PARTNER-IN-CHARGE: BJARKE INGELS PROJECT LEADER: DAVID ZAHLE CONTRIBUTORS: AGUSTIN PEREZ TORRES, ANDY YU, DAVID VEGA, JAN MAGASANIK, KAI-UWE BERGMANN, KRISTINA LOSKOTOVA, LOUISE HANSEN, MARC JAY, PABLO LADRA, PETER LARSEN, PETER RIEFF, SIMON LYAGER POULSEN, TINA LUND HØJGAARD JENSEN
The two organisational devices of Warsaw Museum of Modern Art – the stratified horizontal organisation and the Voronoi framework of the urban block create an architecture of parallel realities, where a multitude of different activities can occur simultaneously without limiting one another. The chasms and fissures provide generous views between different programs as well as at times necessary separation. The combination of urban unity and spatial fragmentation creates an architectural experience capable of bridging the memory gap between the historical city centre across the Soviet regime to contemporary Warsaw. WMoMA will physically provide a variety of shortcuts, escape paths and niches for contemporary art and urban life to insert itself into the new urban fabric of the revitalised Plac Defilad and Warsaw’s Museum of Modern Art. The building envelope is fractured vertically. In addition, a clear horizontal programmatic stratification is created, to allow public life, urban flows and views of art to permeate the building through a network of cracks, gaps and fissures. By deploying the Voronoi framework, a structure that combines a logical and efficient organisation in terms of programmatic adjacencies, with an organic experience, intuitive orientation and exciting spatial relationships is possible. At the ground level the Voronoi framework creates a landscape of boulder like fragments symbolising urban tissue with irregular streets, passages and alleys creating shortcuts between street, plaza and park. Each fragment can be rented to its own tenants or used by the museum as retail opportunities. The Voronoi framework prioritises the human scale and slyly introduces an urban irregularity into the formal master plan. Vertically, daylight flows through the linear skylights between the art galleries, into the foyer and the shopping gallerias below. Hovering between the field of boulder fragments and the cloud like exhibition vessels are a series of platforms serving the public and staff spaces. Voids between the boulders rather than closed walls serve to differentiate the programmes of public and staff. A tilted platform serves as the grand staircase into the main exhibition space and bridges
span across the fissures to connect the different programmes. Another platform is lifted up to create the main auditorium, whereas third is sealed to incorporate necessary private functions. The bridges between the individual platforms create an instantaneous flexibility as they can be opened or closed to resolve security issues for special events and arrangements. The public level provides a 360 degree panorama of the surrounding city as well as sight lines to the retail gallerias below and selected artworks above. Hanging above the public platforms are the Art Clouds which are individual vessels joined to form a continuous exhibition level. This level is fractured into a cluster of 8 exhibition galleries. Furthermore two sculpture gardens and a restaurant are wedged in to provide areas of contemplation. WMoMA’ s rooftop constitutes an archipelago of green islands floating in the sea of the city. The roof gardens offer space for sculpture gardens, outdoor cafes, events, opening night galas, and performances. Individual islands can be made accessible or isolated by adding or subtracting bridge connections.
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