This project in Rumšiškės stands out for its conscious architectural retreat from the foreground. The entire structure of the centralized museum storage facility with a competence center is designed underground, allowing the relief to become the main architectural element. Architecture here is perceived not as an independent object, but as an experience integrated into the natural environment.
The main goal of the project is to enhance the existing landscape. The building’s design is shaped in such a way that the relief remains visually and functionally dominant, while the architectural intervention is subtle, sustainable, and long-lasting.
An important part of the project is the principle of openness. The museum’s storage facility does not function as a closed institution, but as an infrastructure that is understandable and visible to the public. Visitors are given the opportunity to observe the processes of storage, restoration, and preparation of museum artifacts, thus creating a relationship of trust between institutions and the public and bringing cultural heritage closer to people.
The complex consists of various closely related functions: a museum repository, a competence center, exhibition spaces, a conference hall, a library, and a café. These spaces function as a single integrated system, ensuring not only the effective preservation of cultural heritage, but also its active presentation and use.
The project shapes a contemporary approach to museum infrastructure – as a modern, open, and sustainable environment where cultural heritage is not isolated but integrated into everyday life.