REDESIGN OF AN EXISTING BUILDING INTO THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL THEMATIC MUSEUM OF PIRAEUS

2nd  HONOURABLE MENTION  -  INTERNATIONAL ARCHITECTURAL COMPETITION - competition link

ARCHITECTS TEAM:

culture, art, history ...

These are only a few words that could revive the Ietionian Coast, turning it into a pole of culture and recreation. A proposed redevelopment, on the one hand aims to reconnect the urban fabric with the coastal front and on the other to attract a significant number of both local and foreign visitors.

The challenge in this competition for the New Archaeological Thematic Museum of Piraeus was not only the morphological processing of the existing robust and rigid building shell, but also its connection to the continuously evolving area of the Cultural Coast of Piraeus. Because of the relatively remote location of the Museum within the wider area of the Cultural Coast, the Museum should develop into a landmark that connects the neighbouring museums through the elevated and ground level public space that surrounds it.

This proposal addresses the Museum conceptually and morphologically as the connecting point of the entire coast to the multicultural nature of Piraeus and its History. The urban fabric is connected to the sea, while the public space penetrates the robust shell of the Museum. The distinct characteristics of the different entrances to the area of study, offer the visitors a glimpse to the past and a connection to the present.

A monolithic wall made of concrete, unfolding like a ribbon around the front side of the Museum, reveals part of the existing structural frame of the ground floor at the entrance. The wall, with its polygonal form in plan, visually unifies the hill of the archaeological site with the Museum, expanding the base of the superstructure through its rigidity.

The proposed second skin covering the facades of the Museum’s superstructure, establishes a reference point to the region. Fins made out of copper and brass alloy, have a distinct patina and tint on each side. Depending on the point of view, they reveal the old and the new coastline of Piraeus and the old fortification walls of the harbour, creating a ‘veil of memory’ around the superstructure of the building. They create an altering view that reflects the continuously developing image of Piraeus through time and history.