An art museum is a building or space for the exhibition of art. The idea behind this proposal by James Law Cybertecture, which was awarded a merit of honorary mention, is to create an architecture that becomes an art piece itself. To create spaces that are unique and flexible. The fluidity and formless spaces is designed to promote movement and interaction. More images and architects’ description after the break.
States of matter are the distinct forms that different phases of matter take on. Solid is the state in which matter maintains a fixed volume and shape; liquid is the state in which matter maintains a fixed volume but adapts to the shape of its container; and gas is the state in which matter expands to occupy whatever volume is available.
The site is located near the southern tip of Yingge district in New Taipei City, on a reclamation area on the west side of Dahan River. The site is near the Yingge Railway Station and the Yingge Ceramics Museum.
The building is 11 stories high, 77 meters in width, length and height. The program is divided into 3 zones, the contemporary museum, children museum and library, administration zones. From the 2/F lobby visitors can access either one of these zones. The northern portion allows access to the 3/F contemporary museum and the special exhibits. The southern portion allows access to the basement library and administration offices and the 3/F children museum.
The building form allows for natural ventilation and sunlight through the entrances and atrium spaces. Stack effect is movement of air into and out of building driven by buoyancy. This can improve the thermal comfort in semi-open area without the requirement of HVAC system. Energy savings can be achieved. Stack effect is carried out through the light well located at the centre of the building. Rainwater is collected through the façade and roof of the building and the grey water is reused for irrigation and flushing of bathrooms. To reduce the demand for potable mains water, the recycle of grey water and rainwater harvesting can be used for non-portable purposes.
PV lamp posts and wind turbines are scattered around the site to promote a more environmentally friendly environment. To achieve better energy performance, displacement ventilation can be integrated with radiant cooling system. Radiant cooling refers to any system where interior surface temperatures are lowered to remove sensible heat gain. During the construction stage, piping system is evenly woven before concrete is casted. Chilled water circulates in the piping system to remove the heat.
The design has a conventional column free structural system. It is supported by the RC walls at the building edge. The RC wall contributes to the overall thermal mass of the building and provides a continuous surface for the attachment of the “ball” cladding, insulation, and most importantly – waterproofing. The trusses would roughly be 2.5m deep. The random “left over” spaces created between the spheres are used to allow light into the museum. The western and eastern sides have less glazing to block off the sunlight and the northern and southern sides have a larger portion of glazing.
