CHILDREN’S INTERACTIVE MUSEUM in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia by Henning Larsen Architects

Article source: Henning Larsen Architects

The new Children’s Interactive Museum is based on children, their natural curiosity and imagination. Thus, the museum design focuses on the idea of a tree hut as a magical place in the treetops and their dynamic play of light and shadow.

The Children’s Interactive Museum is situated in King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where Henning Larsen Architects is behind several mixed-used buildings in addition to the master plan for the area.

Image Courtesy © Henning Larsen Architects

• Architects: Henning Larsen Architects
• Project: CHILDREN’S INTERACTIVE MUSEUM
• Location: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
• Client: RIC
• Gross floor area:14,000 m2
• Year of construction: 2012 – 2014
• Type of assignment: 1st prize in invited international competition
• Team: Thornton Tomasetti Engineering, Cultural Innovations

Image Courtesy © Henning Larsen Architects

The overall vision of the Children’s Interactive Museum is to support the objective of strengthening the future generations’ desire to learn and educate through play. By exploring the museum and its stories, the children will get a greater understanding of themselves and the world around them – while the stories at the same time allow them to unfold their creativity and imagination.

Image Courtesy © Henning Larsen Architects

The museum appears as a series of tree huts in various sizes, where light filters its way down through the treetops, creating a unique atmosphere in each individual hut and the open passages between them. The idea is to encourage the children to explore the different huts by building on the conception of a tree hut as a place of stories, play and imagination. The foyer space under the tree huts expresses itself as a swarming forest floor of play and adventure appealing to children’s imagination and inviting them for further discoveries in the exhibitions.

Image Courtesy © Henning Larsen Architects

The tree huts are clad in thousands of small mosaics providing the building with a monolithic expression when viewed from afar and at the same time offering a variation of colours and textures when perceived up close. The randomly placed windows on the facade serve as the eys of the building and reflect the surrounding area at daytime whilst standing out as colourful sparkling dots of light at night.

The overall vision of the Children’s Interactive Museum is to support the objective of strengthening the future generations’ desire to learn and educate through play. By exploring the museum and its stories, the children will get a greater understanding of themselves and the world around them – while the stories at the same time allow them to unfold their creativity and imagination.

Image Courtesy © Henning Larsen Architects

The museum appears as a series of tree huts in various sizes, where light filters its way down through the treetops, creating a unique atmosphere in each individual hut and the open passages between them. The idea is to encourage the children to explore the different huts by building on the conception of a tree hut as a place of stories, play and imagination. The foyer space under the tree huts expresses itself as a swarming forest floor of play and adventure appealing to children’s imagination and inviting them for further discoveries in the exhibitions.

The tree huts are clad in thousands of small mosaics providing the building with a monolithic expression when viewed from afar and at the same time offering a variation of colours and textures when perceived up close. The randomly placed windows on the facade serve as the eys of the building and reflect the surrounding area at daytime whilst standing out as colourful sparkling dots of light at night.

Tags: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Category: Museum

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