Project: Exhibition centre of Strasbourg
Location: Strasbourg
Status: Scheduled completion 2021
Kengo Kuma and Associates (KKA) has won first prize in a competition for a new riverside exhibition halls and park complex in Strasbourg. The architects see the project as a way to create a new image for the city. Named ‘Lisières’ or ‘Edge of the forest’, the halls have primarily a metals structure, complemented with a series of locally-sourced wooden vertical elements, which both support the natural ventilated roof covering and filter the light. The vast roof is divided to reflect the internal functions and bring a human scale to the large building. Image: © Kengo Kuma & Associates - Images by Lunance
Project: Odunpazari Modern Museum
Location: Eskişehir, Turkey
Status: scheduled completion 2019
Scheduled to open in June 2019, the Odunpazari Modern Museum is KKA’s first project in the country, and will bring a significant collection of modern and contemporary art spanning the 1950s onwards to the university town. Covering 4,500 sq m spread over three levels, the museum will offer an array of exhibition spaces, from open plan areas on the ground floor to smaller rooms on the upper levels. A central skylit atrium will welcome natural light into the building, permeating it throughout. Image: courtesy of Kengo Kuma and Associates (KKAA)
Project: Odunpazari Modern Museum
Location: Eskişehir, Turkey
Status: scheduled completion 2019
Kengo Kuma and firm partner Yuki Ikeguchi envisioned the museum’s stacked timber design: ‘We wanted the building to carry the history and memory of the town,’ says Ikeguchi, who looked to the local Ottoman wooden cantilevered houses for inspiration. KKA’s material choice also pays homage to the town’s history as one of Turkey’s thriving timber markets. Ikeguchi continues; ‘At the heart of this project was a desire to create a link between people and art.’ Image: courtesy of Kengo Kuma and Associates (KKAA)
Project: Maritime History Museum of Saint-Malo
Location: Saint-Malo, France
Status: ongoing, scheduled completion 2022
Kengo Kuma & Associates won first prize in the international competition to design the Maritime History Museum of Saint-Malo, a museum that will focus on local city history. The architecture of the museum responds to the naval and industrial traditions of Saint-Malo. The three-part stacked structure overlooks the nearby Duguay-Trouin dock and is surrounded by seascape. Image courtesy of Lautre Image. Writer: Nurit Chinn
Project: Maritime History Museum of Saint-Malo
Location: Saint-Malo, France
Status: ongoing, scheduled completion 2022
Due to complete in 2022, Kengo Kuma’s museum appears as a ship on the side of the horizon. The dynamic elevation of the structure and strong cantilevers give the building an illusion of movement. The museum functions as both a marker, a destination, and a means to connect the historical city with the new districts. Its lightness and transparency almost renders it a part of the environment, as well as a place of attraction. Image courtesy of Lautre Image. Writer: Nurit Chinn
Project: Maritime History Museum of Saint-Malo
Location: Saint-Malo, France
Status: ongoing, scheduled completion 2022
The interior of the museum features warm, open woodwork, again evoking naval architecture with the use of structural tinder. Integral to Kengo Kuma & Associates’ vision is creating a unique museum experience from the inside of the museum outwards. A panoramic view of the city is visible from within the exhibition spaces – described by the architects as a ‘belvedere museum’. The offsetting three level structure of the museum ensures that viewers will have a different perception of the city from wherever they stand. Image courtesy of Lautre Image. Writer: Nurit Chinn
