23/11/2015
The Foundation of the Latvian Museum of Contemporary Art has completed work on the development of the museum concept, in accordance with which it has now commenced the next phase of the museum’s establishment, i.e. the selection of a team of architects. The architectural competition will be organised by London-based Malcolm Reading Consultants, which this summer successfully organised the challenging Guggenheim Helsinki Museum architectural competition in Finland.
The Latvian Museum of Contemporary Art’s vision is to become the most visited art museum in the Baltic States, as well as a cultural and arts centre of interregional significance, whose exhibitions are regularly included in the programmes of museums in other countries, thanks to its unique collection spanning art and visual culture in Latvia and the Baltic Sea region from the 1960s and its ability to arrange the loan of collections from private collectors.
The vision outlined in the museum’s concept envisages that the museum building should become an excellent example of outstanding architecture and one of Riga’s premiere points of interest for visitors to the city. The building must be built using environmentally sustainable solutions that attract international interest and acclaim. In order to achieve these goals, the organising of the competition has been entrusted to Malcolm Reading Consultants (MRC).
“We are honoured to undertake this project of such great importance to Latvia. The objective of the architectural competition is to choose a team of architects and the museum’s architectural concept design. We estimate that this process could take up to six months, bearing in mind that we are going to approach architects of international standing. The prerequisite for our collaboration stipulated by the Foundation of the Latvian Museum of Contemporary Art is to involve Latvian architects in drafting the competition offers and in subsequent work with the winning team of architects. I have no doubt that architects will be interested, because this project will give them the opportunity to establish a building in what is not yet a densely built-up area, but which at the same time happens to be in the very heart of the capital. Right now, as far as European capital cities are concerned, this is a rare opportunity,” said MRC Chairman Malcolm Reading commenting on this collaboration.
MRC specialises in organising high-level international architectural competitions for the construction of new buildings of national importance all over the world and has clients in Finland, the Czech Republic, Russia, India, Qatar, Taiwan and elsewhere. In London, MRC clients in the field of culture include the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Natural History Museum and White Cube, etc. The UK Pavilion at the universal exposition Milan Expo 2015, whose architectonic solution was chosen in a competition run by MRC, has just won the exhibition’s ‘Best in Show’ prize, as well as nine other awards, including the Italian Association of Architects award for ‘Best Pavilion Architecture’.
