Swiss architects Christ & Gantenbein placed first among tough competitors, such as the five Pritzker laureates (Peter Zumthor, Zaha Hadid, Rafael Moneo, Tadao Ando and Jean Nouvel) in the competition to design an extension for the Kunstmuseum. Thanks to a generous donation to the Canton of Basel-Stadt, the Basel Kunstmuseum was able to hold a competition to expand the museum to an adjacent lot. Christ & Gantenbein’s awarded design was defined as a “contemporary brother” of the 1930’s Kunstmuseum.
More about the awarded winning design after the break.
The building’s angled form gives reference to the historical former buildings of the “Burghof” and creates the front building between St. Alban Vorstadt and Dufourstrasse. Yet, a contemporary element is splashed across the front of the brick façade to create an image for the newer building. This “digital art magazine” is a frieze made out of light emitting diodes.
The openings of the facade are arranged to give scale and proportion to the building structure. The closed wall of the top floor where the special shows are taking place, the upright windows of the first floor and the pragmatically placed openings in the ground level mark the vertical organization of the building.
The direct entry to the new building facing the street is formed by the extension of the existing arcades of the Kunstmuseum and is marked by the drawn-in corner of the front facade. A “subterranean alley” provides views to a garden foyer of the lower courtyard.
To see more of Christ and Gantenbein’s work previously featured on ArchDaily.
