Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) and A+ Architecture have been announced winner of the international design competition for the new Cité du Corps Humain (Museum of the Human Body) in Montpellier, France.
The Museum of the Human Body, which will be part of the newly developed area Parc Marianne, is rooted in the humanist and medical tradition of Montpellier and its world-renowned medical school, which dates back to the 10th century.
The new Museum will explore the human body from an artistic, scientific and societal approach through cultural activities, interactive exhibitions, performances and workshops.
The 84,000-sf museum is conceived as a confluence of the park and the city—nature and architecture—bookending the Charpak Park along with the Montpellier city hall.
The building’s program consists of eight major spaces on one level, organically shaped and lifted to form an underlying continuous space. Multiple interfaces between all functions create views to the park, access to daylight, and optimizing internal connections.
"Like the mixture of two incompatible substances—oil and vinegar—the urban pavement and the parks turf flow together in a mutual embrace forming terraced pockets overlooking the park and elevating islands of nature above the city," said Ingels. "A series of seemingly singular pavilions that weave together to form a unified institution, like individual fingers united together in a mutual grip."
The museum’s roof functions as an ergonomic garden—a dynamic landscape of vegetal and mineral surfaces that allow the park’s visitors to explore and express their bodies in various ways, from relaxing to exercising, from the soothing to the challenging.
The façades of the museum are transparent, maximizing the visual and physical connection to the surroundings. On the sinuous façade that oscillates between facing North and South, East and West, the optimum louver orientation varies constantly, protecting sunlight, while also resembling the patterns of a human fingerprint—both unique and universal in nature.
The jury, headed by the City’s Mayor Ms Hélène Mandroux, chose BIG over five other shortlisted international teams and praised BIG’s design for combining innovative, environmental and functional qualities.
The new Museum will contribute to Montpellier’s rich scientific and cultural heritage, attracting tourists, families, as well as school classes, academics and art lovers. Construction is scheduled to start in 2016, and the building will open its doors to the public in 2018.
The Museum of the Human Body follows BIG’s experience in museum design, as well as contributes to BIG’s growing activities in France. The firm recently completed the Danish National Maritime Museum, in which crucial historic elements are integrated with an innovative concept of galleries.
Other current cultural projects include the LEGO House in Billund, the recently announced Blaavand Bunker Museum in Western Denmark, and MECA Cultural Center in Bordeaux, along with EuropaCity, an 80-hectare master plan on the outskirts of Paris.
Related Stories
| Apr 25, 2012
Missner Group names McCrory VP of property management
McCrory will be responsible for overseeing the financial and operational needs of the firm’s commercial real estate portfolio which includes more than two million square feet of property.
| Apr 25, 2012
Rogers joins Morgan/Harbour as senior project manager
Rogers will also manage the construction process and daily activities as well as act as the interface between the subcontractors, owners, municipalities and regulatory agencies
| Apr 25, 2012
J.C. Anderson selected for 50,000-sf build out at Chicago’s DePaul University
The build-out will consist of the construction of new offices, meeting rooms, video rooms and a state-of-the-art multi-tiered Trading Room.
| Apr 24, 2012
ULI Real Estate Consensus Forecast, projects improvements for the real estate industry through 2014
Survey is based on opinions from 38 of the nation’s leading real estate economists and analysts and suggests a marked increase in commercial real estate activity, with total transaction volume expected to rise from $250 billion in 2012 to $312 billion in 2014.
| Apr 24, 2012
Roofing Supply Group acquired by Clayton, Dubilier & Rice
RSG provides a complete offering of residential and commercial roofing materials and related supplies.
| Apr 24, 2012
McLennan named Ashoka Fellow
McLennan was recognized for his work on the Living Building Challenge.
| Apr 24, 2012
AECOM design and engineering team realizes NASA vision for Sustainability Base
LEED Platinum facility opens at NASA Ames Research Center at California’s Moffett Field.
| Apr 23, 2012
Vegas’ CityCenter called financial ‘black hole’
Two and a half years ago, stockholders filed six lawsuits after the stock price fell from $99.75 on Oct. 9, 2007, to $1.89 on March 5, 2009. Bondholders sued over similar steep losses.
| Apr 23, 2012
Innovative engineering behind BIG’s Vancouver Tower
Buro Happold’s structural design supports the top-heavy, complex building in a high seismic zone; engineers are using BIM technology to design a concrete structure with post-tensioned walls.
