11 Nov 2019
David Chipperfield Architects' West Bund Museum opens to the public
BY Stu Robarts
Shanghai's West Bund Museum, designed by David Chipperfield Architects, has opened to the public as part of the West Bund Masterplan that will introduce a new 9sq km (3.5sq mi) cultural district on former industrial land.
The 22,000sq ft (2,000sq m) facility, established as a partnership between Centre Pompidou Paris and the publicly-owned West Bund Group, sits on the north bank of the Huangpu River and is located in a new public park.
The art centre comprises three main volumes arranged around a central lobby in a pinwheel formation that allows for each to operate independently.
David Chipperfield explained: "The design of the West Bund Museum responds to the openness of the site as well as the surrounding development of a new cultural corridor along West Bund.
"The willful act of twisting the three main exhibition halls breaks the conventional geometry and creates powerful interstitial public spaces. A wide esplanade opens onto the waterside promenade, offering an outdoor space for use by everyone."
Each volume houses a gallery space on its upper floor and, variously, a multipurpose hall, an art studio and education spaces on their lower floors.
They are also clad with translucent recycled glass façades, which contrast with their plaster clad hovering roof canopies.
Discussing the look and feel of the venue, Alexander Schwarz, partner and design director at David Chipperfield Architects Berlin, said: "The volumes of the daylit exhibition spaces lie on the riverbank like large translucent monoliths, while the open foyer and the access to the galleries extend the public realm as a flowing space into the interior of the museum."
The museum also features a café with a rooftop terrace and a bookshop.
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