A slice of the surreal: Coop Himmelb(l)au complete shimmering 'House of Bread' museum
by Kim Megson | 16 Oct 2017
Austrian architects Coop Himmelb(l)au have completed The Haus des Brotes (The House of Bread) – a shimmering museum and events centre for bread company Backaldrin.
Conceived as “a cabinet of curiosities”, the sculptural building is located at the company’s headquarters in Asten, northern Austria.
It is formed of a concrete rectangular base supporting a wooden and steel-clad structure, which contains a customer information centre, events rooms and a two-storey, free-form exhibition area for showcasing an assortment of eclectic objects.
The base building houses the 120-capacity workshop and events space, with a gallery located above in a circular atrium. There is 1,850sq m (19,900sq ft) of floor area overall.
The exhibition is inspired by those once organised by wealthy collectors in the Baroque period, and features curiosities – some themed around baking and bread – individually suspended from the top of the atrium like “a differentiated crystal chandelier”.
A spiral staircase provides access to the two exhibition levels and a variety of observation points. The objects are presented with the help of walls, tables and cabinets that are integrated into the architecture.
“The design of the exhibition area is based on the idea of a cabinet of curiosities,” said the architects. “This concept is especially appropriate for the unusual and small-scale objects in the collection related to the topic ‘bread’, which are presented in the exhibition area.
Coop Himmelb(l)au used 3D CMC (computerised numerical control) technology to prefabricate many construction elements and shorten building time, and there are minimal interior finishes as the timber shell has been left exposed.
The studio are known for their boundary-pushing projects featuring abstract forms, such as the Museum of Contemporary Art and Planning Exhibition (MOCAPE) in Shenzhen, China, which opened in October 2016, and the House of Music, in Aalberg, Denmark, which opened in August 2014.
Coop Himmelb(l)au House of Bread Wolf Prix Haus des Brotes Asten Backaldrin architecture design
The exhibition is inspired by those once organised by wealthy collectors in the Baroque period, and features several curios Credit: Coop Himmelb(l)au
Objects are presented with the help of walls, tables and cabinets that are integrated into the architecture Credit: Coop Himmelb(l)au
A spiral staircase provides access to the two exhibition levels and a variety of observation points Credit: Coop Himmelb(l)au
22 Nov 2016
Wolf Prix says 'stupid' architecture competitions are making studios 'slaves to money'
03 Oct 2016
Shenzhen welcomes Coop Himmelb(l)au-designed mega-museum
10 Mar 2016
Coop Himmelb(l)au design House of Bread museum in Austria
15 Aug 2014
Striking House of Music opens in Denmark
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