Marina Abramovic and James Turrell collaborate with Tasmania art museum for massive culture and leisure expansion
The founder of Australia’s (MONA) in Hobart, Tasmania, has unveiled a host of planned leisure projects for the institution; including a 160-room art hotel, a casino and a collaboration with famous artist James Turrell.
In a blog post titled Stuff We are Planning to Do, posted on the museum’s website, MONA founder David Walsh revealed several ambitious projects involving individuals from the worlds of art, architecture and design – including Marina Abramovic, Ryoji Ikeda and Wim Delvoye.
The museum is in advanced discussions about building a hotel on the banks of Hobart city’s River Derwent, which will feature rooms designed by Abramovic and Turrell.
Plans for the hotel also include a theatre, spa, library for rare books, restaurant, bar and retail space. The centrepiece for the entrance chamber would be “a giant, asymmetrical rope-making machine” created by artist Conrad Shawcross.
“Well before MONA opened we have mooted plans for more than twenty hotels,” said Walsh. “We finally have something that we feel justified in building. I believe a hotel should make exactly the sort of statement that MONA avoided: it should shout where MONA whispered.”
Walsh has previously said the existing 9,500sq m (102,257sq ft) museum building – designed by Fender Katsalidis Architects and excavated into the cliff face adjacent to Hobart's waterfront – is “deliberately underwhelming” in order for visitors to immerse themselves in the galleries.
To transport visitors to the new hotel from across the river, Walsh said ship-building firm Navigators are creating Venice-style ferries, including a 25-person, AU$1m (US$722,000, €662,000, £485,000) water taxi.
Meanwhile, the museum will receive a major extension, with a new wing extending 20m (65m) over the river. Walsh said this will house four of Turrell’s light-focused art works, along with a new restaurant and bar, which will later be further extended to house MONA’s administrative offices.
Several new exterior art installations are also in the pipeline. The biggest, named the Heavy Metal Science Lab, is a 50m (164ft) diameter walking ring created by local architectural firm Room 11 in the river. The platform would be supported by hydraulics, allowing it to rise and fall with the tide. Walsh said the plan is to keep it just below the waterline so that visitors have to walk barefooted, provoking contemplation of the state of the River Derwent’s water, which suffers from metal contamination.
Other new outdoor attractions will include playgrounds by artists Toshiko MacAdam and Tom Otterness and a planned boardwalk which could link to a twisting tower created by Delvoye.
In another high-profile development, Walsh revealed Mexican architect Javier Senosiain – known for his organic style of design – will create a curving, river-facing casino nicknamed Monaco, the proceeds of which could fund the other planned projects.
“Usually casinos are closed edifices of steel and gloss,” wrote Walsh. “That’s not what I want. I want an open garden. I want it to be worth a visit, just from an art and architecture point of view.”
At the end of his post, Walsh said that he is also working on adding a number of new art works to the museum, including pieces by Matthew Barney, Thomas Huber and Richard Wilson. He is also chasing a Ryoji Ikeda Spectra light installation – one of which lit up the London skyline to dramatic effect in 2014.
Walsh – who has made a fortune as a professional gambler – founded MONA in 2011 to exhibit his collection of more than 2,200 old and contemporary art works.
Artist and architects join forces to fire Aarhus art museum into the world elite
Pillar of Light spirals into London's skyline to commemorate WW1
OMA appointed to design Marina Abramovic Institute in Hudson
Hobart's Museum of Old and New Art opens
BIG unveils Eve Music Hall as Croatia venue nears completion
Bob Rogers hands BRC to long-serving leadership team
Wellness care hospital opens in Vilnius with innovative spa and hospitality concept
Universal and Puy du Fou projects point to rise of Oxford–Cambridge corridor
A proposed Puy du Fou development near Bicester and Universal Destinations and Experiences’ planned resort in Bedford are emerging as part of a wider transformation of the Oxford–Cambridge Growth Corridor into a major centre for UK leisure and tourism investment.
For years, the corridor has been associated primarily with science, technology, housing and university-led economic growth. However, the clustering of large-scale visitor attraction projects along the
All-inclusive eco-wellness development Auko to open near Vietnam’s Son Doong caves
Shedd Aquarium upgrades its visitor experience with new Immersion Theater
Shedd Aquarium has opened the Immersion Theater developed in partnership with SimEx-Iwerks, as part of a wider strategy to enhance the guest experience and create additional revenue opportunities.
The attraction has transformed the aquarium’s Phelps Auditorium into a multi-sensory venue combining panoramic projection, environmental effects and interactive technology.
A new pre-show area allows visitors to engage with augmented reality marine animals before entering the
Mandarin Oriental announces standalone Mansions-branded residences for Abu Dhabi
MCR is planning a luxury hotel for London's BT Tower
Joy as a radical act: Yinka Ilori launches solo exhibition celebrating the rebellious power of spreading happiness
Work gets underway on Madrid's €800 million leisure complex
Work is underway in Madrid on one of Europe’s most significant multi-functional complexes, combining sport, entertainment, culture and education.
The €800 million initiative to regenerate the former Olympic Aquatic Centre in the north-east of the city, next to the Riyadh Air Metropolitano stadium, is being led by Barsento – a joint venture between Live Nation Entertainment, Oak View Group and Atlético de Madrid. The project will
Therme Manchester reveals 90:90 strategy – 90 per cent of the UK population within a 90-minute drive of a Therme
Four Seasons’ Naples Beach Club opens 2,800sq m Sanctuary spa inspired by indigenous Calusa people
Orient Express Corinthian to host Ocean Rebirth wellness retreat in collaboration with Guerlain
Famed London nightclub, Tramp, launches Tramp Health
First look: Miraval opens on the Red Sea in Saudi Arabia
Hainan Science Museum by Ma Yansong, opens in China
A new science museum has opened to the public in Haikou after attracting more than 350,000 visitors during a four-month soft opening period.
Designed by Ma Yansong and his practice MAD Architects, the Hainan Science Museum is located on the edge of Wuyuan River National Wetland Park and has already recorded peak attendance of more than 5,800 visitors in a single day.
Commissioned by
Zannier Île De Bendor launches with design by Hardel Le Bihan Architectes
Sæl Spa readies for launch in London: “a modern British sanctuary”
Immersive art bathhouse Submersive announces debut location in Austin
Construction begins on regenerative wellness destination The Shenandoah Nature Resort
Royal Caribbean reveals record-breaking cruise ship
V&A East opens in London
David Geffen galleries open at LACMA
New venue The Lands by Capella includes a longevity centre to complement sister hotel Capella Sydney
World of Frozen launches at Disneyland Paris
Pical Resort by Valamar reveals first Croatian spa under the ESPA brand
Mandarin Oriental creates end-to-end Egyptian journey with two new hotels and first-ever luxury river cruise
Designers Mendil + Meyer launch new division called Lām Concepts for strategic wellness projects
Wilderness Bisate in Rwanda reveals brand’s second Sanctuary spa
4a Architekten shares details of wellness extension at Salinarium Bad Dürkheim Thermal Spa
