TRIAS has created a speculative museum proposal for the MA | UA (Museum of Architecture | Utzon Archive), a permanent exhibition space for Danish architect Jørn Utzon’s archive in Sydney, Australia.
Jørn Utzon’s archive is buried in boxes and basements across Sydney. This rich body of knowledge—of original drawings, prototypes, photographs and models—is a valuable public resource, alive with thoughts and experiments. Yet, it remains inaccessible and intangible to most.
Sited on a slender wedge adjacent to Sydney’s “Goods Line” urban park, the building consolidates and catalogues Utzon’s archive in a single place. Three protective, archival pillars are featured at the museum’s core, with public programs and contemporary exhibits taking place in between.
On a larger scale, the building is composed of three key elements: the display pillars, a viewing sequence that expands on Utzon’s ideals of counterpoint, and a clouded façade. Additionally, the MA|UA is open and permeable to the neighboring park.
Archive and museum co-exist in a constant dialogue between past and present, old and new. Likewise, the architecture of the MA|UA mediates between the scale required of a public building, and the human scale of the objects on display.
The MA|UA proposal was the recipient of the 2015 NSW Design Medal and has been shortlisted for the 2017 Archiprix Award.
By: TRIAS
Project leads: Jennifer McMaster, Jonathon Donnelly
Location: Ultimo, Sydney, Australia
Designed: 2015
Status: Unbuilt
News via TRIAS.
