British architect Thomas Heatherwick has proposed to repurpose a grain silo into an art gallery in Cape Town, South Africa. The silo is made up of 42-concrete tubes, which Heatherwick plans to make into gallery spaces; some will house elevators.
The gallery, called the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MOCAA), will be located on Cape Town’s V&A Waterfront. It will be built in a partnership between V&A Waterfront and entrepreneur Jochen Zeitz. Zeitz’s art collection will help to furnish the museum’s 80 proposed galleries.
A press release from V&A Waterfront states that the proposed museum will “become the most significant collection of contemporary art from Africa and its Diaspora.”
V&A Waterfront challenged Heatherwick to honor the original structure and contemporize it at the same time.
In the center of the nine-story building, an oval-shaped, cathedral-like atrium will be carved out and covered by a glass roof. With a cross-section cut through eight of the central concrete tubes, the atrium will be surrounded by concrete tubes, according to Dezeen.
Beneath the building, there is a network of underground tunnels; these will create education and site specific spaces so that artists can dialogue with the original structure, V&A Waterfront has said.
In addition, 18 education areas, a storage and conservation area, bookstores, and a rooftop sculpture garden, among other features, are included in Heatherwick’s design.
On the building’s exterior, layers of paint will be removed in order to show the raw concrete of the silos, and pillowed glazing panels will bulge outward from the upper floors.
Heatherwick’s proposed design was presented this past week at Cape Town's Design Indaba Expo 2014.
Related Stories
Cultural Facilities | Apr 6, 2015
Berkeley’s West Branch Library generates more energy than it uses
The 9,400-sf facility is California's first Net Zero Energy-certified building.
Cultural Facilities | Mar 31, 2015
Pratt Institute to offer first-ever degree in placemaking
As part of its new Urban Placemaking and Management degree, Pratt will offer courses on topics such as "the history and theory of public space" and the "economics of place."
Structural Materials | Mar 30, 2015
12 projects earn structural steel industry's top building award
Calatrava's soaring Innovation Science and Technology Building at Florida Polytechnic University is among the 12 projects honored by the American Institute of Steel Construction in the 2015 IDEAS² awards competition.
Cultural Facilities | Mar 30, 2015
Designs released for new entertainment center in Lubbock, Texas
Amenities of the facility include a performance venue that seats 2,220, a smaller one that seats 425, a 6,000-sf multipurpose room, and a bistro café.
Religious Facilities | Mar 23, 2015
Is nothing sacred? Seattle church to become a restaurant and ballroom
A Seattle-based real estate developer plans to convert a historic downtown building, which for more than a century has served as a church sanctuary, into a restaurant with ballroom space.
Cultural Facilities | Mar 17, 2015
The High Line’s co-designer wins contract for The Underline in Miami
James Corner Field Operations will design the master plan for this 10-mile restoration project.
Cultural Facilities | Mar 13, 2015
New Orleans observation tower to feature 320-foot double-helix gondola ride
Tricentennial Tower will take visitors on a 300-year journey through the city's history before landing them at the top for a 360-degree view of the Crescent City.
Retail Centers | Mar 10, 2015
Retrofit projects give dying malls new purpose
Approximately one-third of the country’s 1,200 enclosed malls are dead or dying. The good news is that a sizable portion of that building stock is being repurposed.
Retail Centers | Mar 10, 2015
Orlando's Skyscraper to be world's tallest roller coaster
The Skyscraper is expected to begin construction later this year, and open in 2016. It will stand at 570 feet.
Cultural Facilities | Mar 9, 2015
London council nixes plans to rebuild the Crystal Palace
Plans for the new Crystal Palace Park were scrapped when the city and the project's developer could come to an agreement before the 16-month exclusivity contract expired.
