Designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners (RSHP) the newly completed British Museum's World Conservation and Exhibitions Centre is a key piece in the institution's significant extension scheme - which includes the Sainsbury Exhibitions Gallery, unveiled in March.
The new centre was commissioned in 2007, as a response to the museum's growing needs, both in terms of exhibition space and the protection and upkeep its collection. Now, the museum will have ample and suitably state-of-the-art spaces to store, conserve, study and display its pieces. 'For the first time ever, facilities are properly adapted to the needs of the museum,' says British Museum director Neil MacGregor. This project, which has been almost four years in the making, is not only aiming to highlight the renowned museum as a world leader of exhibitions, but also conservation and study of historical artefacts.
Located in the Bloomsbury complex's northwest corner, the building is set to greatly improve the museum's on site operations. 'Our main task was to solve issues that developed in the museum over the past few years,' explains RSHP's Graham Stirk. The site's preparation began in 2010 and the carefully executed construction work - sensitive to the existing buildings and the museum's irreplaceable collection nearby, and managed by Mace - is now reaching completion, with the final touches currently being added.
Its nine levels (about half of which are nestled underground) include naturally lit conservation rooms, laboratories, studios, offices and extensive modernised services and facilities to support all the various functions. Its truck lift for example, is one of the largest in Europe, while its environmentally controlled storage areas span approximately 5,100 sq m.
True to the practice's tradition, the building features exposed services and is created in a contemporary style, one however, that respects its historical neighbours. 'Yes, we were [intimidated by the context],' says Stirk. But the team worked towards maintaining the street's proportions, breaking down the addition's volume into smaller pavilions, clad in kiln-formed glass and Portland stone as a response to the area's existing material palette.
The British Museum's extension is a thoughtful addition to an iconic London neighbourhood, responding sympathetically to the rhythm and coloration of its surroundings; and developments are still ongoing. Future plans include a green roof across the pavilions, which will include bird nesting boxes and two beehives.
Located in the Bloomsbury complex's northwest corner (right), the new building is set to greatly improve the museum's on site operations
The site's preparation began in 2010 and the carefully executed construction work - sensitive to the existing buildings and the museum's irreplaceable collection nearby - is now reaching completion, with the final touches currently being added.
Its nine levels include naturally lit conservation rooms, laboratories and studios, offices and extensive modernised services and facilities to support all the various functions.
The museum will have ample and suitably state-of-the-art spaces to store, conserve, study and display its collection.
The extension scheme includes the Sainsbury Exhibitions Gallery, which was unveiled in March.
Clad in kiln-formed glass and Portland stone, the façade is a response to the area's existing material palette.
The spatial arrangement circles around two main elements; the primary, 'served' spaces and the secondary, 'servant' spaces.
Several circulation hubs connect the building's different floors, linking office and studio spaces with the storage facilities underground.
The project's environmentally controlled storage areas span approximately 5,100 sq m
ADDRESS
World Conservation and Exhibition Centre
Great Russell Street
London WC1B 3DG
-
How architects are redefining disaster relief through designDisaster relief architecture is a critical component of humanitarian aid across the globe; read our ultimate guide on how architects can make a difference through design
-
Paul Gulati on storytelling, multi-sensory design and the evolution of Universal Design Studio'f a space works – not just as a beautiful image, but for the people using it – then we’ve done our job,' he tells us
-
Seiko and Datsun mark a shared heritage and history with three new limited-edition watchesThe Japanese brands pay tribute to the Datsun 240Z and Prospex Speedtimer in a new collaboration
-
Meet Studio Knight Stokoe, the landscape architects guided by ‘resilience, regeneration and empathy’Boutique and agile, Studio Knight Stokoe crafts elegant landscapes from its base in the southwest of England – including a revived brutalist garden
-
Tour this compact Kent Coast jewel of a cabin with StudiomamaJack Mama and Nina Tolstrup take us on a tour of their latest project – a small but perfectly formed Kent Coast cabin in Seasalter, UK
-
Boutique London rental development celebrates European courtyard livingLondon design and development studio Wendover unveils its newest residential project, 20 Newcourt Street, comprising nine apartments; we toured with co-founder Gabriel Chipperfield
-
A refreshed Fulham house balances its history with a series of 21st-century interventionsA Fulham house project by Bureau de Change creates a 21st-century domestic haven through a series of contemporary interventions and a deep connection to the property's historical fabric
-
The Monthly Architecture Edit: Wallpaper’s favourite July housesFrom geometric Japanese cottages to restored modernist masterpieces, these are the best residential projects to have crossed the architecture desk this month
-
Visiting an experimental UK home: welcome to HousesteadThis experimental UK home, Housestead by Sanei + Hopkins, brings together architectural explorations and daily life in these architects’ own home
-
A house in Leamington Spa is a domestic oasis infused with contemporary sensibilitiesThis house in Leamington Spa, by John Pardey Architects, brings together flood risk considerations, a conservation area's historic character, and contemporary sensibilities
-
A garden explaining carbon capture in nature? Head to Kew in LondonKew unveils 'Carbon Garden', a new offering at London's Royal Botanic Gardens that's all about carbon capture within nature; and how plants and soil can be leveraged to help us battle climate change
