2nd Draft
LINKDRAFT TEXT [ EXTENDED ]A well known museum which focuses on the display of furniture and interior design, Frank Gehry’s Vitra Design Museum is a work of art itself. By using it as a starting point for this project, the aim was to further develop this building’s best features and to create another style which can reflect on a new and innovative idea. That is, allowing the museum to become a more relaxing place by creating a sense of tranquillity as well as minimising the visual impact of the building.
Shifting the original environment to a rock garden, both the museum and its location reflect on their compositional qualities for they give a strong visual impact to their viewers. A place where design is highly valued, it needed a surrounding which was equally as valuable to bring out the significance of design. These rock gardens are highly praised and respected in places like Japan for they are not only visually pleasing, they are also a mean for psychological benefits. It calms the mind by bringing out the tranquillity of the surrounding using natural stones and vegetation. By creating this atmosphere, visitors will have a better sensation when admiring the works inside the Vitra Design Museum.
The original museum had minimal windows and looked more confined. In order to further develop the idea of calmness, the re-envision idea for the museum itself was to make it appear visually “lighter”, minimising stress to the eye. To do this, the first task was to subtract different parts of the building accordingly, allowing it to look not as packed. Installing glass facades around the museum also created a much lighter feeling because of the additional transparency.
In terms of material, changing the timber roof to a warm brown colour was a starting point for it gives a more comfortable atmosphere. Simple concrete was used for the interior floor and blue tinted glass for the facades so it could lightly give the museum a bit of colour. The choice of the blue tinted glass also came from a psychological viewpoint for this colour is often described as “peaceful” and “tranquil” and is also associated with feelings of calmness and serenity. This worked well with the stone garden environment as part of the re-envision.
Inspired by Frank Gehry’s ‘Walt Disney Concert Hall’, how the manipulation of interior undulating curves accommodates sound reflections for musical performances, a slight change to the Vitra Museum was considered to accommodate visitors. The new approach was to transform half of the front entrance section of the original Vitra Design Museum into a mini café where people could sit down and relax before or after exploring the place. The initial curve was lowered down to make a flat transparent ceiling and the triangular block was pushed further away so that the whole area won’t look overly crowded and will not disrupt visitor circulation within the museum. This mini café area gives its visitors an opportunity to enjoy the rock gardens outside, not just the interior displays alone.
