Architecture
New Acropolis Museum - Bernard Tschumi Architects
The New Acropolis Museum designed by Architect Bernard Tschumi is a simple, dramatic and precise architectural design, predominantly in glass to present the unparallelled collection of the museum.
The new Acropolis museum, designed by swiss born Architect Bernard Tschumi in collaboration with Michael Photiadis of Athens and the museum director Professor Dimitrios Pandermalis, is located in the historic area of Makriyianni, south east of the Rock of Acropolis. It stands less than 300 meters southeast of the Parthenon and barely 2 km from the main city square of Athens. Architect Bernard Tschumi's design was chosen in the fourth competition after nearly 30 years of planning.
Bernard Tschumi's design revolves around primarily three things; light, movement and tectonic and programmatic element. Together these characteristics turn the constraints of the site into an architectural opportunity, offering a simple, precise yet a dramatic modern design which has a clear concept reminiscent of the ancient Greek buildings. Located so near to one of the most influential and historic building, 'The Parthenon', the architectural design of the New Acropolis Museum was deliberately kept simple and clear to be worthy of showcasing the Museums unique and unparalleled exhibits. No attempt was made to overshadow the overwhelmingly historic surroundings as it would have been futile. With an exhibition space of 150,000 sq ft the 226,000 sq ft New Acropolis museum is 10 times the size of the old museum.
The building is designed in three layers; a base, a middle zone and a top. The base or the the ground floor which contains the entrance lobby and the temporary exhibit spaces, is actually structured so as to reveal the excavations of an ancient Athenian city, which were discovered during the pre- construction. Thus the whole building is placed on stilts, actually slender columns, more than 100 in number, which have been individually placed so as to not disturb the fragile excavation site. Enormous use of glass is used, like the glass floor through which the excavations are clearly visible and the glass ramp leading up to the galleries. The sloping floor of the entrance hall resembles the ascension to the rock.
The glass ramp leads to the second layer which contains all the permanent sculptures and artifacts related to the Acropolis ranging from the Archaic to the late Roman period. The geometry of this part of the building follows the street's geometry and pattern. The second layer also accommodates the cafes, open terraces, offices, 200 seat auditorium and public terraces on a mezzanine level.
The third layer is the top room, the glass enclosure, which is called the Parthenon Gallery. This glass – enclosed rectangular gallery with glass sky lights is all about the Parthenon – it is absolutely parallel to it ,which is why the museum building makes a strange shift of 23 degrees on the top floor and the reason the corners seem to stick out over the street. These glass walls allow spectacular 360 degree views of the historic site including the Parthenon.
The museum collection is arranged in chronological sequence: starting with the archaeological excavations visible through the glass floor on the ground floor, to the Parthenon Frieze placed in center of the Parthenon Gallery at the top, to finish in the Roman Empire galleries housed on level two. The architectural design of the museum reinforces this clarity in the sequence of movement by guiding the visitors through the three layers of the building by forming a three dimensional loop. Thus the museum manages to accommodate and navigate the large numbers of visitors expected daily without any problems or glitches.
The premise of the design was to keep it as minimal as possible, in terms of form as well as material so as not to compete with the Parthenon. The materials used for the construction of the New Acropolis Museum are very simple: glass, reinforced concrete and steel for the structure and glass, concrete and marble for the interiors.
The main structure of the building is of concrete and it also acts as a neutral backdrop for the artwork. This is most evident in the Parthenon Gallery where the rectangular concrete core of the museum is the wall on which the Parthenon Frieze is exhibited and placed in the same exact arrangement and orientation as when it was on the monument itself. Holes placed in the concrete walls at regular intervals absorb sound. The concrete chosen is very soft, so it absorbs light as the real sculptures are made of marble which actually reflect light. This combination makes the exhibits stand out and brings out the detailing of the sculptures, almost making them look alive.
The extensive use of glass for flooring, walls and ceilings has made it possible to bring in natural light into the massive galleries and thus allowing the sculptures to be viewed in natural light as they were originally meant to be. This intensive use of glass has transformed an essentially concrete building to a very light, minimal structure and manages to establish a dialogue with the Parthenon. Marble covers all floors.
Black marble from Macedonia is used for all circulation and public spaces and ochre- pink marble form Elikonas of Peloponessos was used for all the galleries to match the sculptures patina.
Site Plan
Two aspects that were technologically important for the New Acropolis Museum were that it was located on a seismic zone and the other was the temperature. Latest earthquake protection technology is used to make the structure as subtle and flexible as possible by using the Base Insulation System. Here the lower part of the museum is anchored to the ground whereas the upper part is separated from it by a sort of cushion, so it can move separately from the lower part.
The temperature of the New Acropolis Museum is controlled by the 'glass skin'. The 'glass skin' is a gap between the double – glazing of the top floor which causes the hot air from the galleries to circulate through the glass wall gaps via the ceiling and ends up in the basement where it is cooled and recirculated up to the galleries.
Exploded Axonometric
Architect Bernard Tschumi has managed to create an architectural dialogue between one of the masterpieces of ancient architecture and the New Acropolis Museum. He has achieved this with emphasis on clarity and simplicity in the architectural design and purity of materials used.
Project: | New Acropolis Museum, Athens, Greece |
|---|---|
Client: | The Organization for the Construction of the NewAcropolis Museum |
Architects: | Bernard Tschumi Architects |
Lead Designer: | Bernard Tschumi |
Project Architect: | Joel Rutten |
Structure: | ADK and Arup |
Mechanical & Electrical: | ADK and Arup |
Civil: | Michanniki Geostatiki and Arup |
Lighting: | Arup |
General Contractor: | Aktor |
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