kengo kuma's winning design for the albert kahn museum and gardens

‘albert kahn museum and gardens’ by kengo kuma, hauts-de-seine, france

image © kengo kuma

in response to a brief calling for the connection of the historic and the new, kengo kuma‘s proposal for the ‘albert kahn museum and gardens’ employs a reinterpretation of the singularly japanese engawa, a transitional space between interior and exterior, to weave together the built form and the idyllic greenery of the western parisian landscape. the delicately folded shape emphasizes the corner site while allowing access to the gardens via semi-open spaces. albert kahn was a 19th century french banker who amassed an cultural archive from around the world. the four hectares of gardens in boulogne-billancour are horticultural models from a range of countries. with minimal interventions into the landscape, the first level will house temporary exhibitions and a shop while the park-facing second floor will be generously glazed for optimal views of the perfectly preserved gardens. the defining architectural gesture is the use of screens with alternately dense wooden battens that act as both shading device and dynamic envelope. the project will start in 2015 and is expected to be completed by 2017.  

the architecture makes use of the corner site

image © kengo kuma

wooden battens and terraced spaces blend interior and exterior

image © kengo kuma

upper floors will house the archives

image © kengo kuma

‘engawa’ type rooms allow garden access

image © kengo kuma

project info:

developer: conseil general des hauts-de-seinesite: boulogne billancourt, département des hauts-de-seine, francemain use: museumtotal floor area: 4632 m2 (as planned)height: 3 stories above ground (as planned)