Press conference, Dec. 19, 2013

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Judith Lyons
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1 Press conference, Dec. 19, 2013 WINNER OF THE COMPETITIVE TENDING PROCEDURE FOR THE NEW ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN OF THE MUSEUM: CONSORTIUM RALPH APPELBAUM ASSOCIATES / GARETH HOSKINS ARCHITECTS INTERNATIONALLY RENOWNED EXHIBITION DESIGNERS AND ARCHITECTS SELECTED FOR THE WELTMUSEUM WIEN Director-General Sabine Haag and Director Steven Engelman, together with Timothy Ventimiglia and Gareth Hoskins, present the plans for the museum s new design. Competitive tending procedure Exhibition and architectural concept Office profiles Statements Timetable Press photographs Competitive tending procedure On December 16, 2013 the winners of the international competitive tending procedure for the new architectural design of the Weltmuseum Wien are announced: the jury selected a consortium comprising the international exhibition designers Ralph Appelbaum Associates, the Scottish architecture firm Gareth Hoskins Architects, and the Austrian engineering office, Vasko + Partner, specialists for technical installations. The presentation of this consortium of architects marks another seminal drum beat on the road to a new installation of the Weltmuseum Wien.

2 The concept for the new Weltmuseum Wien comprises costs of 25 million Euro and was approved by the Ministry of Education, the Arts and Culture (BMUKK) and the Economics Ministry (BMWFJ) in April As its financial contribution the Weltmuseum Wien i.e. the wissenschaftliche Anstalt KHM mit MVK und ÖTM will undertake to raise the sum of 2.5 million Euro through sponsoring.. This means that the budgeted costs come to a total amount of 27.5 million Euro. The new installation of the collections and the planned comprehensive renovation of all 29 galleries covering c. 4,600 sqm in total should be completed by the end of In April of this year the Weltmuseum Wien s new name, online presence and CI were presented at a press conference. At the same time the international competitive tending procedure required by law was announced. It was a two-stage tending procedure, supervised by the solicitor s office Fellner Wratzfeld & Partner, and the architectural firm Simlinger und Partner. In the first stage a jury comprising Dr. Sabine Haag (Director-General of the KHM Verband), Dr. Gerbert Frodl (former Director of the Österreichische Galerie Belvedere), Dr. Albert Lutz (Director of the Museum Rietberg, Zurich) and Dr. Barbara Plankensteiner (Deputy Director of the Weltmuseum Wien) and headed by Dr. Steven Engelsman (Director of the Weltmuseum Wien) selected the best five of the initial seventeen proposals, who advanced to the second round. Four of these five selected candidates presented designs for the second stage. The other three candidates for the second stage were: pla.net architects zt / 7reasons Medien / Atelier Wunderkammer Nieto Sobejano Arquitectos S.L.P. / VERDANDI Ausstellungs- und Museumsplanung Bernard Walten Moser Ziviltechniker The winner was announced on December 16, Both the winning design and the designs by the other candidates will be presented at the Weltmuseum Wien from December 19, 2013.

3 The Exhibition and Architectural Concept The aim of the architectural redevelopment is to convert the Weltmuseum Wien into a modern museum which attracts numerous visitors with its outstanding collections and improved physical presence. The proposed redevelopment of the 4,600 sqm permanent exhibition spaces and the restructuring of an additional 4,600 sqm will be executed with a uniform architectural language which is sensitive to the historic context of the Neue Burg and Corps de Logis, and which works in conjunction with the exhibition design to create a clear and coherent museum. The exhibits from all over the world will be displayed in all their diversity and in ways which demonstrate their complex origins and changes in interpretation which have occurred over time. The exhibition design will adopt the Weltmuseum s new approach to include a discussion on its own historical heritage as an ethnology institution and reveal how the exhibits were collected. Therefore each exhibition room will include a reflection on one specific topic of the museum s history. Today, the dialogue between the world cultures takes place on a level playing field. In order to convey a polyphonic and multi-faceted picture, the exhibition will embrace myths and traditions, personal experiences as well as new research results. Analogous and digital elements such as small scale mobile devices and large scale interactive media installations will be used as appropriate to contextualise the collection and reinforce the visitors focus on the exhibits. An illuminated media box located on the newly designed public square will draw the visitors attention to the new Weltmuseum Wien. This box serves as an orientation and information centre but can also be used as a catering and event location. The Hall of Columns, aligned with and clearly visible from the newly planned ticket desk, will become the new meeting point in the museum. New seating in the Hall of Columns will invite visitors to stay and look at art objects hanging from the ceiling and entice them to explore more in the adjacent exhibition rooms.

4 A vast collection of exhibits, until now stored in depositories, will be made available to the public as part of the redevelopment. The proposals plan to merge the Corridor of Wonder and the library to make it a unique architectural experience. Playful approaches and methods of displaying key individual exhibits and books in showcases will invite visitors to discover more. In addition the redevelopment will include an improved event area and create a more spacious restaurant and an exclusive visitor lounge. The new architectural and exhibition concept is a unique opportunity to give the museum a platform with a vision focussing on the present and the future, thereby allowing the visitors to experience the historically grown collections from various perspectives and encourages contemplation on national history and intercultural relations which is essential in a more and more globalising world to maintain mutual respect, understanding and the sustainability of a society. Office Profiles Ralph Appelbaum Associates Ralph Appelbaum Associates (RAA) are planners and designers of award-winning museums, exhibitions and visitor centers worldwide. Subject areas range from natural history and the physical sciences to cultural and social history. Founded in 1978, RAA has 34 years experience working for institutions across the United States and in 26 foreign countries. Currently the largest museum design firm in the world, RAA has a staff of over 160 designers, technology and media specialists, architects, writers and editors operating from studios in New York, London, Beijing, Berlin and Moscow. RAA has won virtually every major award for design, including The United States Presidential Award for Design Excellence and the Federal Design Achievement Award.

5 RAA is best known for cultural projects requiring a marriage of complex educational content with physical environments that are at once compelling and smoothly operational. RAA strives for the optimum balance of sustainability, value, design, and experiential quality. More than 30 million people visit RAA-planned and -designed projects each year, among the most important are the Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center, Anchorage, Alaska (2010) and the Hawaiian and Pacific Hall, Bishop Museum, Honolulu, Hawaii (2009 and 2013). Gareth Hoskins Architects Gareth Hoskins Architects (GHA) was founded in Glasgow, Scotland, in It quickly became one of the most well-known and most successful architectural offices in Scotland. The practice portfolio focuses on public buildings such as museums and cultural facilities, educational and healthcare buildings and includes framework and master planning. Currently, Gareth Hoskins Architects has more than 30 employees, 16 of which are registered architects. For several years now, the practice has worked collaboratively with architectural and planning firms all over Europe on various projects in Ireland, Italy, Germany, Poland and Portugal. Gareth Hoskins Architects projects have won several awards. In 2009, the practice was conferred the Architects of the Year award by the Scottish Design Awards judges. The practice has been awarded various RIBA Awards from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). In 2011 the firm won the prestigious Andrew Doolan Award for the conversion of the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh. Project Cooperation For more than a decade, Gareth Hoskins Architects and Ralph Appelbaum Associates have successfully worked together in the design and construction of museum buildings. The success of this collaboration lies in the decade-long experience both firms have gained in this field and the mutual respect that they show for each other s expertise. The two most well-known joint projects are the renovation, modification and redesign of the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh (2011) and the development and construction of the Culloden Battlefield Visitor Centre Inverness in Scotland (2007). A few years ago, both firms opened offices in the German capital Berlin.

6 Statements Director-General Sabine Haag: I am very happy that the announcement of the winner of the competitive tending procedure for the renovation of the museum marks another important stepping-stone on the road to the reopening of the Weltmuseum Wien. Right now, the appropriate installation of this unique collection is one of Austria s foremost cultural projects and I am sure that the internationally renowned consortium of architects Appelbaum/Hoskins will master this challenge with bravura. Director Steven Engelsman: The Weltmuseum Wien is a meeting place for people and civilisations where respect and love of cultural variety are experienced and communicated. It is about people and their social, sociological and cultural moorings. With this reorientation of the Weltmuseum Wien we hope to create a place where visitors can experience the wealth of the world s civilizations in unique settings presented on a sound scholarly basis. Our architects Ralph Appelbaum from New York and Gareth Hoskins from Glasgow are internationally renowned! I look forward to a fascinating and inspiring collaboration! Consortium of architects Appelbaum/Hoskins: We, Ralph Appelbaum and Gareth Hoskins Architects, are extremely pleased to have won this architectural competition, and we look forward to a successful evolution of the project Weltmuseum Wien. We are deeply impressed by the outstanding quality of the collections and the architecture of the Corps de Logis; they have inspired us in conjunction with the new concept for the museum s intercultural dialogue: many of the objects are unique, and the search for their origins and meanings provides material for endless stories

7 Timetable Spring 2014: Opening of the special exhibition on the circumnavigation of the globe and the collections assembled by Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Este, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of his assassination at Sarajevo on June 28, A thematic prologue for our future permanent collection (working title: The Grand Tour ) Early 2015: Press conference to mark the start of construction work and the ground-breaking ceremony Early 2016: End of building work and commencement of new installation Late 2016: The grand finale reopening of the Weltmuseum Wien including the Zoom Kindermuseum

Press photograps Area in front of museum

8 Press photograps Area in front of museum entrance with media box Ralph Appelbaum Associates/Gareth Hoskins Architects Intervention in the Column Hall in the Corps de Logis (Mezzanin) Ralph Appelbaum Associates/Gareth Hoskins Architects Corridor of Wonders Ralph Appelbaum Associates/Gareth Hoskins Architects Gallery Art Histories Ralph Appelbaum Associates/Gareth Hoskins Architects Culloden Battlefield Visitor Centre, Schottland Andrew Lee

Communication and Public Relations Kunsthistorisches Museum mit MVK und ÖTM 1010 Vienna, Burgring

9 National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh Andrew Lee Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center Anchorage, Alaska Chuck Choi Press contact Nina Auinger-Sutterlüty, MAS (Head) Ruth Strondl, MAS Communication and Public Relations Kunsthistorisches Museum mit MVK und ÖTM 1010 Vienna, Burgring 5 Tel.: / Fax: info.pr@khm.at

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