Lima Art Museum Addition
Lima, Peru
All people and cultures share an aspiration for beauty. Clarity, simplicity, and proportion are measures of beauty.
While societal traditions and norms would influence the application of clarity, simplicity and proportion as measures, the abstraction process of the search is universal. Through abstraction, or the removal of all that is unnecessary, the essential beauty of balanced perfection can be seen.
© Studio Twenty Seven Architecture
The museum works to reinvigorate the park and in doing so becomes a lighthouse for the denizens seeking meaning and beauty.
This competition entry unearths the centuries old measure of idealized proportion in the golden rectangle of the museum’s new floor plan. The golden rectangle represents the definition of beauty and provides a unifying symbol for Lima, the museum and its collections. It is a reminder of the quest for simplicity and beauty shared in all human pursuits. From mathematics to physics, engineering to science, religion to philosophy, the search for simple ways to express the essence of a concept has become the definition of Beauty.
The building influences the park and the park influences the building. Through the use of transparency and lighting the museum would function as a new language by which to enhance the park – unifying the different architectural pieces in the park.
The design approach to the main gallery was flexibility. In order to provide maximum spatial flexibility, every component including display panels sit on custom-made stainless steel framework supported by heavy duty wheels. All panels in the space are easily movable to allow for functional operations. With sizes of the movable components matching the designed modular spatial grid, allowing them to be stored efficiently and accurately, the space can be converted into a complete open space within 1 hour.
The entrance reaches out and responds to the station exit and streets and directs patrons into to the building or out to the park. The full height glass provides clear views in to the historic building while at night, light spills out and illuminates this new main entry to the park. The underside of the imposing cantilever shields the sun. It is a dark grey color to accentuate the visual framing of the historic building and exaggerate the cooling effect of the shade. The plaza paving pattern resonates with the historic building façade and further ties all the elements together.
