Source: MUS
The innovative 2010 design conceived by the Katowice-based studio for the Tokyo Fashion Museum has been awarded the World Architecture Award 20+10+X as one of 20 top-tier projects from around the world in the 11th cycle of the competition
The World Architecture Award is considered one of the most democratic of international architecture prizes, voted on by an international online community of architects and a group of 250 "Honourary Members" who are critics, academics and theoreticians in the field. Each year hopefuls are welcomed to submit an entry at no cost, with the jury of Honourary Members selecting 20 of the best projects, the whole community selecting their favourites, along with the "X" list of the most controversial projects. Projects are judged mainly on the basis of novelty, originality and creativity.
The MUS studio project for the Tokyo Fashion Museum was submitted by designers Adam Zwierzyński and Anna Porębska in 2010. It was not selected for realisation, however, two years on it has been recognised as one of the most innovative projects on the global architecture scene. Using an irregular stacked cube-like structure reminiscent of New York’s New Museum, the designers have wrapped a layer of leather around the 22-storey building like a corset, referencing the structure and appearance of textiles, as well as weaving traditions. The exterior of the 100-metre-tall building mimics the appearance of an irregular stack of spools, while the interiors are meant to present a large-scale exhibition on the history of fashion according to a chronological, orderly narrative.
Zwierzyński and Porębska explain that
The plaiting of the skin is then modified adjusting the meshes and its density to factors such as lighting conditions, view openings and overall composition. Fibers of the fabric winding around the museum cross at different angles, creating either a dense net or wide meshes locally, providing a full opening of the building. The main core of the vertical construction is a skeleton of the building, on which the ceiling has been based. This solution allows the elevation to be free from construction elements so that a clear frameless glass facade can be applied. Stripes of the external white walls have been wound by cable arrangement – ‘fabric’. The structure of the fabric is achieved by the use of white cables made of artificial material complemented by a light frame made of carbon pipes.
See all the winners of the 11th cycle of the World Architecture Award 20+10+X, see: www.worldarchitecture.org
The competition is now open for the 13th edition, with submissions welcome at: http://www.worldarchitecture.org/main/?manifest=awards
See more on MUS Architects at musarch.pl
Editor: Agnieszka Le Nart
Source: MUS, WAA