Coop Himmelb(l)au

The Museum of Contemporary Art & Planning Exhibition (MOCAPE) is part of the master plan for the Futian Cultural District, the new urban center of Shenzhen. The project combines two independent yet structurally unified institutions: The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) and the Planning Exhibition (PE) as a cultural meeting point and a venue for architectural exhibitions. The lobby, multifunctional exhibition halls, auditorium, conference rooms and service areas will be used jointly.

Both museums are designed as separate entities emphasizing their individual functional and artistic requirements and yet are merged in a monolithic body surrounded by a multifunctional facade. This transparent facade and a sophisticated internal lighting concept allow a deep view into the joint entrance and transitional areas between the buildings. From the inside, visitors are granted an unhindered view onto the city suggesting they are somewhere in a gently shaded outdoor area, an impression enhanced by 6 to 17 meter high, completely open and column-free exhibition areas.

Behind the entrance area between the museums, visitors ascend to the main level by ramps and escalators and enter the “Plaza”, which serves as a point of departure for tours of the museums. From the Plaza the rooms for cultural events, a multi-functional hall, several auditoriums and a library can be accessed. A silvery shining and softly deformed “Cloud” serves as a central orientation and access element on the Plaza. On several floors the Cloud hosts a number of public functions such as a café, a book store and a museum store and it joins the exhibitions rooms of both museums with bridges and ramps. With its curved surface the Cloud opens into the space reflecting the idea of two museums under one roof.

The Urban Concept – The MOCAPE monolith completes the eastern part of the master plan for the city center and fills the last gap in the Futian Cultural District between the „Youth Activity Hall“ (YAH) to the north and the opera-library complex to the south. Similar to other buildings in this district, the main level of the MOCAPE lies 10 meters above the ground level and so creates a stage-like platform, which acts as a unifying element with the adjacent buildings.

Skin, Light and Energy Concept – The exterior skin consists of an outer layer of natural stone louvers and the actual climate envelope made from insulated glass. These elements form a dynamic surface, which is structurally independent from the mounting framework of the museum buildings. This functional exterior envelops the two museums, a vertical access and entertainment element (Cloud), the public Plaza, and the multifunctional base.

The technical building equipment is designed to reduce the overall need of external energy sources: Pollution free systems and facilities use renewable energy sources through solar and geothermal energy (with a ground water cooling system) and only systems with high energy efficiency have been implemented. The roof of the museum filters daylight for the exhibition rooms, which reduces the need for artificial lighting.

With this combination of state of the art technological components, a compact building volume, thermal insulation and efficient sun shading the MOCAPE is not only an architectural landmark but also an ecological and environmentally friendly benchmark project.

Client
Shenzhen Municipal Culture Bureau, Shenzhen, China
Shenzhen Municipal Planning Bureau, Shenzhen, China

Architect
Planning: COOP HIMMELB(L)AU – Wolf D. Prix / W. Dreibholz & Partner ZT GmbH
Design Principal: Wolf D. Prix
Project Partner: Markus Prossnigg
Design Architects: Quirin Krumbholz, Jörg Hugo, Mona Bayr
Project Architects: Angus Schoenberger, Veronika Janovska
Project Coordination: Xinyu Wan
Project Team: Tyler Bornstein, Jessie Castro, Jessie Chen, Jasmin Dieterle, Luis Ferreira, Peter Grell, Paul Hoszowsky, Dimitar Ivanov, Ivana Jug, Zhu Yuang Kang, Alexander Karaivanov, Nam La-Chi, Rodelle Lee, Feng Lei, Megan Lepp, Samuel Liew, Thomas Margaretha, Jens Mehlan, Ivo de Nooijer, Reinhard Platzl, Vincenzo Possenti, Pete Rose, Ana Santos, Jutta Schädler, Günther Weber, Chen Yue
Digital Project Team: Angus Schoenberger, Matt Kirkham, Jasmin Dieterle, Jonathan Asher, Jan Brosch

Consultants
Executive Architects: HSArchitects, Shenzhen, China
Structural Engineering: B+G Ingenieure, Bollinger und Grohmann GmbH, Frankfurt, Germany
Mechanical Engineering: Reinhold Bacher, Vienna, Austria
Lighting Design: AG Licht, Bonn, Germany
Cost Management: Davis Langdon & Seah, Hong Kong, China

Chronology
Competition(1st Prize): 2007
Start of Planning: 2008
Start of Construction: 2012
Estimated Completion: 2016

Project data
Site Area: 21,688 m²
Total usable Floor Area: 80,000 m2
Building Height/Length/Width: 40 m / 160 m / 140 m
Number of Stories: 7