Danish architects behind Liverpool’s most spectacular building

ARCHITECTURE: Liverpool’s new city museum will become an architectural beacon – a British counterpart to Sydney Opera House. Danish architects are behind the proposal for a new waterfront which will be the focal point when Liverpool becomes the European City of Culture in 2008

The Århus based architect firm 3 x Nielsen has orchestrated one of Great Britain’s most striking constructions, Liverpool’s new city museum. The museum will become a British counterpart to Sydney Opera House when it is completed in 2008, when Liverpool takes over the mantle of European City of Culture. A monumental piece of architecture which for decades will mark Liverpool’s traditionrich waterfront.

     3 x Nielsen won the Liverpool assignment in competition with several of the world’s most prominent architects. Both because of the specific architectural design, and its consideration of location and exploitation of the public space that Liverpool’s waterfront affords. 3 x Nielsen also made a brilliant presentation of the project, which shows that the firm is based on teamwork in preference to individual achievements.

Focal point
“It was our vision, not just for the museum building itself, but equally for the area that gave the result,” says architect Michael Kruse, one of the managers of the project in Århus. “Instead of seeing the museum solely as a monument, our proposal was for a focal point which condenses Liverpool’s identity and community life.”

     Liverpool’s Merseyside area is undergoing tremendous development as its historic fabric is being turned in to an urbane and vibrant public waterfront. Unlike many waterfront cities, Liverpool is gifted with a clear and precise urban edge towards the River Mersey. At Pier Head, the Three Graces – three striking buildings from the city’s glorious trade period – mark a significant and sudden change in building height and density, clearly marking where city and docklands meet.

Respect for history
“It is in the middle of this area, which has a channel system, historic buildings and a flow of people, that the museum will be built. It is very much a question of understanding the entire area rather than just building a house,” says Michael Kruse. “In 2004, the dock areas were added to UNESCO’s list of the World’s Cultural Heritage, and it is exactly this respect for the unique, historical area which characterises our proposal. The museum will become the world’s largest museum of city history and the first national museum to exhibit popular history and handle social history subjects in all their complexity. The museum aims to attract up to a million visitors annually, and the city council hopes that it will become a cultural beacon which can help Liverpool rise to renewed greatness.” “It is essential that the building does not compete with the surroundings, but rather becomes a part of the environment,” says Kruse. “This forms the basis of the architectural expression. There is no back and front. Regardless of where you are standing, the building forms an integrated part of the public space. Inside the museum you can look out with the feeling that you are in the middle of it all. The actual central axis of the building forms a natural part of the harbour promenade, where you can move in and out of the building without necessarily visiting the exhibitions in the museum.”

Difficult construction
Aware of the prominent context, the building still needs to state itself as a clear landmark on the Liverpool waterfront. Emphasising the inviting and public nature of a 21st century museum, the building is conceived as a fold in the expanse of the waterfront made up of inclined and elevated platforms. The interior platforms serve as exhibition spaces while the exterior platforms serve as informal amphitheatres, elevated panoramic observation posts or passages.

     “It will be a relatively difficult construction because of the location and the complexity of the place,” says Michael Kruse. “There is both a channel and a railway tunnel running under the building, and the foundation itself will be a bit of a challenge. We have then made a virtue out of necessity by letting the construction form part of the architecture, for example by letting the building function as a bridge in itself. In that way it also becomes a bridge between the museum and everyday life, between different spaces and between city and water.” The project in Liverpool is estimated to be costing around EUR 100 million

http://www.3xnielsen.dk

Arts and Media Centre at Salford University 3 x Nielsen has won another prestigious UK building project with the Arts and Media Centre at Salford University in Manchester. The 21,000 m2 building will be a unifying icon for the entire university. The Arts and Media Centre will give Manchester’s educational world a new boost and attract new British talents in art, fashion, design, media and performance. 3 x Nielsen has designed an open and dynamic building which will provide the ideal conditions for inspiration and knowledge sharing. The study and workshop areas are woven together in a mixture of single and double floors. The areas are condensed around an open, light space with a conchoidal staircase which moves up through the entire building under a glass roof. The softly shaped exterior of the building will bind the whole campus together as the pivotal point of the university. The facades will be shaped as an almost interactive ’skin’ which reflects the artistic contents of the building.