Design Museum

The project is about a Design Museum in a historic district in Thessaloniki.It aims to shelter a private collection of industrial design objects.The site was chosen so as to enhance the cultural character of the area, as the museum-along with the nearby Photography and Cinema Museum-will create a new cultural triangle in the industrial city’s port. The area’s buildings have various architectural styles and the urban fabric is not well functional.The design strategy was to redefine the relationship between people,land and architecture.The proposal is about a building that expresses the spirit of the times,using traditional materials in a contemporary way and consisting a new local and supralocal landmark. A semi-underground foyer is housed by a synthesis of sloped triangles that on the ground floor level create a new square,repairing the urban fabric.Hence,the entrance to the museum is not obvious and an interactive play is created,aiming to make the visitor observe the area.Once the visitor notices the entrance,the procedure to get to the exhibition functions as a filtration,providing the necessary stimulants.The foyer,a lecture room and the entrance to the café-that is housed in a listed building-are placed there. The building consists of a protective shell,the exhibition space and the space between-where exhibits are hung.The semi-transparent shell allows views of the hung exhibits to invite the passenger in.Within it there is a 3storey cube (exhibition space) and the space between the shell and the cube is used for some exhibits to be hung,so as to provide a 3d view.The walls of the cube become the show cases and some cantilevers allow a more direct view of them.A central staircase aids the natural ventilation and the roof is used for social interaction.