ArchShowcase 
Sumit Singhal
Sumit Singhal loves modern architecture. He comes from a family of builders who have built more than 20 projects in the last ten years near Delhi in India. He has recently started writing about the architectural projects that catch his imagination. MAAT – Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology in Lisbon, Portugal by AL_AMay 3rd, 2017 by Sumit Singhal
Article source: AL_A MAAT, the new Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology, is an outward-looking museum located on the banks of the Tagus in Belém, the district from where the Portuguese great explorers set off. Proposing a new relationship with the river and the wider world, the kunsthalle is a powerful yet sensitive and low-slung building that explores the convergence of contemporary art, architecture and technology. The new building is the centrepiece of EDP Foundation’s masterplan for an art campus that includes the repurposed Central Tejo power station.  Image Courtesy © Francisco Nogueira
 Image Courtesy © Hufton Crow
 Image Courtesy © Hufton Crow Blending structure into landscape, the kunsthalle is designed to allow visitors to walk over, under and through the building that sits beneath a gently expressed arch – one of the oldest forms in western architecture. The roof becomes an outdoor room, a physical and conceptual reconnection of the river to the city’s heart – where visitors can turn away from the river and enjoy the vista of the cityscape, and at night, watch a film with Lisbon as a backdrop sitting on the bank of steps.  Image Courtesy © EDP Foundation Below, the exhibition spaces are extensions of the public realm, with flowing interconnected places for experiences and interactions at the intersection of the three disciplines. These spaces complement the galleries of the converted Central Tejo building. Building on Portugal’s rich tradition of craft and ceramics, almost 15,000 three-dimensional crackle glazed tiles articulate the façade and produce a complex surface that gives mutable readings of water, light and shadow. The overhanging roof that creates welcome shade is used to bounce sunlight off the water and into the building.  Image Courtesy © Francisco Nogueira EDP Foundation and Commission Established in 2004, the EDP Foundation is one of the most prominent private foundations in Portugal. Focused on culture, innovation, science and energy, the Foundation is one of Portugal’s largest social investors. One of the main sponsors of the arts in Portugal, it has commissioned and supported more than 120 exhibitions in the last decade and produces dozens of cultural events every year. With a 3.8ha campus along the Tagus River in Lisbon, MAAT is an ambitious international project that embodies the unique and contemporary vision of the Foundation.  Image Courtesy © Hufton Crow The campus sits on the banks of the Tagus, the source of Portugal’s historic global influence. The river once powered the Tejo Power Station, which was preserved as an example of Portuguese industrial architecture from the first half of the 20th century. Formerly known as the ‘Electricity Museum’ after it opened in 1990, it is one of the most visited museums in the country, with a mix of with an educational and traditional gallery spaces.  Image Courtesy © Hufton Crow In 2011, the EDP Foundation commissioned AL_A to design a contemporary art and cultural space as a counterpoint to the Electricity Museum and the next phase of the art campus. The focus of the kunsthalle was to embody the Foundation and campus philosophy of seeking to move beyond the boundaries of the museum, with the creation of significant public spaces that are free and open to all audiences and all ages. MAAT The Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology (MAAT) focuses on contemporary culture through a combination of visual arts and media, architecture and city, technology and science, society and thought. Committed to creating an environment in which diverse audiences can access contemporary art through educational programs and special events, the EDP Foundation’s new museum will be a space for discovery, critical thinking and international dialogue with its unique heritage, an expanding Portuguese art collection and an innovative exhibition programme.  Image Courtesy © Hufton Crow Site and local context The site is located on the banks of the Tagus in the district of Belém in the west of Lisbon and to the east of Central Tejo. This long riverside site, bounded by road and rail to the rear, presented the opportunity to continue a series of cultural projects along the waterfront that have been in development since the 1990s, which includes Vittorio Gregotti’s Cultural Centre of Belém and Paolo Mendez de Rocha’s Coach Museum.  Image Courtesy © Hufton Crow It is EDP’s intention that MAAT has the most international outlook of the three, not only in terms of its situation on the river, but also in its curatorial intent, with a brief to create spaces that complement traditional modes of displaying artworks. Vision MAAT explores the convergence of contemporary art, architecture and technology as a field of cultural practice. It accommodates a trans-disciplinary programme of exhibitions, public events and community engagement. As a new discursive space for the city, it will lead the conversation about the evolution of Lisbon and Portugal.  Image Courtesy © Hufton Crow Architectural form The architectural design draws on the context of the site, creating both physical and conceptual connections to the waterfront and back to the heart of the city. The building creates four exhibition spaces beneath a gracefully undulating roof, conceived to create a new public space above the galleries.  Image Courtesy © Hufton Crow AL_A’s low-slung response exploits the natural assets of the site, framing an architectural narrative that is sensitive to both its cultural heritage and the future of the city. Blending structure into landscape, the kunsthalle is designed to allow people to walk over, under and through the building that sits beneath a gently expressed arch – one of the oldest forms in western architecture – as well as access the city via a new footbridge over the railway tracks and along the riverside walk. Maintaining a very real connection to the history of the site, the electricity substation and transformers needed to supply the local community continue to operate on the western edge, embraced by the sweeping design of the building.
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Categories: Art Center, Cafe, Educational Center, Event space, Exhibition, Exhibition Center, Mixed use, Museum, Offices, public spaces |
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