Competition:
Archmedium Olympic Museum in Athens. ArchMedium proposes, trough this new
competition, the creation of an Olympic
museum in Athens, dedicated to protect and remember all those historical
moments. The site is located in a specific area of the city, surrounded by
representative landmarks of the ancient Greek culture such as the Acropolis.The project, as a whole, aims to be
a new icon of the city that engages the classic works, the new equipments and
the complex structure of the city. Participants are requested to fulfill the
requirements of the program taking into account its specific function and its
insertion in a precise and characteristic urban environment. The program
requires the creation of public spaces, exhibition areas (Ancient Olympic,
Modern Olympic and Winter Olympic), Technical and operational areas and other
services. The Museum has to create a public square, an exterior area given to
the city that serves as a transition between the city and the museum. Our
proposal for the Olympic Museum in AthensThe MOA genesis is linked to the study
of the two important factors that led to its design:
- the necessity of creating a symbolic
building to represent the greatest sports competition in the world
- its integration in the complex context
of the rich cultural city of Athens. In order to achieve these goals we
designed a new concept for the museum program. We took the classic running
track and transformed it, by applying geometric distortion, into an exhibition
track to fit the museum's needs. The central space, enclosed by the track,
morphed from the classic sports field into an exterior public space and into an
interior underground interactive area for the visitors.By applying this shape transfer we created a highly symbolic experience for the visitors as
well as an iconic museum.To integrate the building in its
context we made another transformation, this time within the vertical axis; the
building is lifted in two areas corresponding with the important circulation
fluxes and the surrounding areas. Two passageways are created to connect the
central public space of the museum with the city. In respect to Athens history
and culture we preserved the basilica ruins on the site and morphed it in a
public space by covering the remaining walls with resistant walk-on glass. Why
our project is special and deserves to win?While we think futuristic designs
are interesting, we consider they are not enough to make a proposal viable. Our
project does not only comes up with a unique building design but also adds
something more. Relative to the terrain, the building fits in the surroundings
as a key fits in its own particular
lock, an advantage that is crucial to the integration of the construction in the
21st century architectural city of Athens. The main novelty of this proposal
consists in its new approach on museum programs. The running track is inspired
from a simple yet universal form, with the aim of proving a great experience to
visitors, meant to attract, intrigue and explore. Team:
Arch.
Student Radu I. Dragoș,
Arch.
Student Petroiu Bogdan