Museo Soumaya, New Mexico Architecture, Architect, New Building Images

Soumaya Museum, Mexico : Building

Contemporary Mexican Architecture design by FREE | Fernando Romero EnterprisE Architects

9 + 6 May & 28 Apr 2011

Museo Soumaya

Design: FREE | Fernando Romero EnterprisE

Completion of Museo Soumaya

images : Adam Wiseman

MEXICO CITY – Designed by FREE | Fernando Romero EnterprisE, Museo Soumaya opened to the public on March 29, 2011 after four years of development. The Museo Soumaya houses one of the most important art collections in Latin America with over 6,200 artworks and 60,000 square feet of exhibition space.

images : Adam Wiseman

The Soumaya Museum is located in a former industrial zone dating from the 1940’s which today presents a very high commercial potential. The Soumaya Museum plays a key role in the reconversion of the area: as a preeminent cultural program, it acts as an initiator in the transformation of the urban perception. Its avant-garde morphology and typology define a new paradigm in the history of Mexican and international architecture.

images : Adam Wiseman

From the outside, the building is an organic and asymmetrical shape that is perceived differently by each visitor, while reflecting the diversity of the collection on the inside. Its heterogeneous collection is housed in a continuous exhibition space spread over six levels, representing approximately 60,000 ft². The building also includes an auditorium for 350 people, library, offices, a restaurant, a gift shop and a multi-purpose gathering lounge.

photos : Adam Weisman / Rafael Gamo

The shell of the building is constructed with 28 steel curved columns of different diameters, each with its own geometry and shape, offering the visitor a soft non-linear circulation all through the building. Located at each floor level, seven ring beams provide a system that braces the structure and guarantees its stability.

photo : Javier Hinojosa

The top floor is the most generous space of the museum; its roof is suspended from an impressive cantilever that allows natural daylight to flow in freely. In contrast, the building’s envelope is nearly opaque, offering little and scarce openings to the outside. This gesture can be interpreted as an intention to create a protected shelter for the art collection. The façade is made of hexagonal aluminum modules that optimize the preservation and durability of the entire building.

photos : Adam Wiseman

“The Museo Soumaya is an extraordinary structure rising up from the earth’s crust as a multi-dimensional icon,” Raymund Ryan,  Curator,  The Heinz Architectural Center.

photos : Adam Wiseman

Soumaya Museum – Building Information

Location: Lago Zurich # 245, Col. Ampliación Granada, Del. Miguel Hidalgo. México DF. C.P. 11320
Completion: Mar 2011
Client/Owner: Fundación Carlos Slim
Architect Office: FREE Fernando Romero EnterprisE
General Contractor: CARSO Infraestructura y Contrucción
Interior Design: FREE + MYT/ CEO-Andrés Mier y Teran

FR-EE/Fernando Romero Enterprise

FREE | Fernando Romero EnterprisE based in New York + Mexico

Soumaya Museum images / information from FREE | Fernando Romero EnterprisE

Location: Del. Miguel Hidalgo, México DF, C.P. 11320

México, North America