building M+: the museum and architecture collection

building M+: the museum and architecture collection
MAD architects
beijing 2050: central business district, beijing, china, 2006
model
115 x 120 x 35 cm

the M+ museum is a new institution designed by herzog & de meuron (with TFP farrells and ove ARUP & partners HK) that will rise within hong kong’s west kowloon cultural district, with a focus on showcasing visual culture that spans local 20th and 21st century art, design and architecture, as well as from china, asia and beyond.

though completion is planned for 2017, M+ has already realized various public programmes and exhibitions, acquiring in its first 10 months, a number of structural works — models, drawings, installations, photographs, videos and other material — for its collection, which will serve as the basis of the institution’s first exhibition dedicated to architecture. the selection of pieces will feature builds from post-world war II hong kong and contemporary china, alongside those from other periods and places. the inaugural showcase will present over 100 projects, many which have previously been unseen, by more than 35 architects from asia and abroad — dating from the 1920s to the present day, offering a snapshot of M+’s approach to collecting, understanding and thinking about the discipline.

sou fujimoto architects
one of 15 concept study models for nature / architecture, serpentine gallery pavilion, london, UK, 2013
various dimensions

represented in ‘building M+: the museum and architecture collection’ will be key figures from hong kong’s architecture community including: chung wah nan, tao ho, eric lye kum-chew, jackson wong chack-sang and rocco yim; mainland chinese architects/artists and firms atelier FCJZ (yungho chang), ai weiwei, jiakun architects (liu jiakun), MAD (ma yansong, dang qun, yosuke hayano), open architecture (li hu and huang wenjing), urbanus and studio pei-zhu; as well as architects ranging from frank lloyd wright and paul rudolph to steven holl, bernard tschumi, and office for metropolitan architecture (rem koolhaas and elia zenghelis). these will be accompanied by works from M+’s visual art holdings, with works by cao fei, andreas gursky, aernout mik and stanley wong (aka anothermountainman).

iwan baan
guanzhou opera house #1, 2010
C-print
91.4 x 137.2 cm
image courtesy of the artist and perry rubenstein gallery, los angeles

the exposition will also give an overview of the process taken in selecting the winning proposal for the M+ museum, highlighting other shortlisted schemes envisioned by kazuyo sejima + ryue nishizawa / SANAA; renzo piano building workshop; shigeru ban architects + thomas chow architects; SNOHETTA; toyo ito & associates, architects + benoy limited, revealing the ongoing progress of the 60,000 square-metre establishment. a specially organized installation, conceived in collaboration with the M+ museum architects herzog & de meuron will offer a look diagroms, models projections, renderings and projections that highlight the property’s core characteristics — a two-level entrance zone, leading from the park, the waterfront and new artist square that incorporates a learning centre, an area dedicated to moving image, and a cafe; a dramatic ‘found space’ at the lower level above the existing airport express tunnel that will anchor the building while affording unique opportunities for large-scale installations; a horizontal podium providing a diverse array of exhibition and display spaces around a central plaza which includes a space dedicated to contemporary ink art, topped by a large public roof terrace. rising above the centre of the podium is a slender vertical ‘tower’ where a research center and offices are located on the lower levels, with a sky garden floor above and restaurants offering views out over victoria harbour and hong kong island.

in addition, a newly-produced video will provide additional insight into the swiss firm’s process of the M+ building, and how in its completion, it will engage and contribute to hong kong’s cultural and urban landscape.

andreas gursky
hong kong and shanghai bank, hong kon, china, 1994
C-print
226.2 x 176.2 cm

‘this exhibition is a milestone opportunity to bring the remarkable design of M+ by the winning architect team to the public, as well as offer a glimpse into the work of our curators in building one of the most important collections of architecture and design worldwide-the first of its kind in asia.

we hope ‘building M+’ will offer access to the future building and how it will be used by the public, while also uncovering the history of architecture in the city set in the context of a global discussion,’ said dr. lars nittve, executive director of M+.

fitch & chung (chung wah nan architects ltd.)
photo of presentation model, peak tower (the upper terminal of the peak tramway), hong kong, china, 1967-1972
11 x 8 cm
gift of the architects

‘building M+ lays the first stakes around which the collection will continue to grow in scope and depth-and around which we hope the public can start to engage architecture in new ways,’ said aric chen, curator (design and architecture) of M+.

‘the exhibition also provides an opportunity to show some of the many generous donations that M+ has received from the architecture and arts community in hong kong and china, representing the strong backing from the local community,’ chen continues.

these include: ai weiwei; andrew lee king fun & associates-architects ltd; chung wah nan architects ltd; cl3 architects ltd; davidclovers; dennis lau & ng chun man architects & engineers (hk) ltd; hong kong academy for performing arts; jiakun architects; MAD; open architecture; P&T architects and engineers ltd (previously known as palmer & turner, hong kong); remo riva; rocco design architects ltd; stanley wong; studio pei-zhu; dr. tao ho; turenscape; urbanus; wong & ouyang (hk) ltd; wong tung & partners ltd; family of the late jackson wong.

fitch & chung (chung wah nan architects ltd.)
site-study photo, peak tower (the upper terminal of the peak tramway), hong kong, china, 1967-1972
18.5 x 26 cm
gift of the architects

as the museum is still under construction, ‘building M+: the musem and architecture collection’ exhibition will be held at artistree, 1/F, cornwall house, taikoo place, island east hong kong, and will run from january 10 to feburary 9, 2014.

ian lambot
aerial view from south west of kowloon walled city, hong kong, china, 1989 (2013)
bubble jet print on moab pearl paper
91.4 x 121.9 cm