Technical Museum Vienna, Austrian Residential Building, Viennese Housing Development

TMW – Technical Museum Vienna, Austria

Contemporary Austrian Architecture design by querkraft architekten

14 Mar 2011

TMW Technical Museum Vienna

new entrance foyer and shop

Technisches Museum Wien

Design: querkraft architekten

during summer 2010 the technical museum together with querkraft architekten designed a new entrance foyer and museum shop.

a modern museum service requires a correspondingly modern level of service – for this purpose space is a must. older museum buildings are challenged to expand and modernise whilst remaining attached to their existing historical structures.

In the 1990s the technical museum faced precisely this difficulty as it tried to gain more space for a larger entrance foyer, a new museum shop and café as well as sufficient amenities, cloakroom space and ticketing capacity. the architectural solution that was chosen in the 90s was a steel-glass box placed in front of the existing historical structure. this solution proved problematic on a few levels shortly after the opening in 1999. the foyer was dominated by large temperature fluctuations, poor acoustics and ventilation, as well as less than optimal visitor circulation.

photograph : Hertha Hurnaus

A competition followed in which querkraft architekten managed to convince the 6-person jury with their design.

basic principle of the new design:

the creation of clear master plan and visitor circulation with an accompanying welcoming emotional atmosphere, which improves the building physics. at the middle of their design solution are multifunctional pieces of furniture made of glass-fibre reinforced plastic and fabric. these ‘trees’ provide seating, shade and acoustic absorption and at night they serve as an illuminate bodies which fill the room with white or blue glowing light. the objects, which resemble trees and can be perceived as a innuendo to the relationship between technology and nature, formally envelope the steel columns and allow a view through the glass ceiling and on to the historical façade.

The shop, which has to do with little floor space, receives new, flexible moveable furnishings for the presentation of products – aligned to the overall design principle.

The realised design from querkraft architekten reveals a definite architectural statement, which communicates with the existing structure and at the same time fulfils the functional requirements of a modern museum entrance.

querkraft architekten

TMW – Technical Museum Vienna – Building Information

Title: TMW technical museum vienna, new foyer and shop
Client: technical museum vienna
Design & planning: querkraft (jakob dunkl, gerd erhartt, peter sapp)
Project architect: dominique dinies
Project team: carmen hottinger, lola rieger, robert haranza, lisi wieser, christoph fraundorfer, aleca bunescu, corinna bach
Executive architect: querkraft zt gmbh, wien
Local site supervision: apo oliver eichhorn
Structural engineering: werkraum jan umlauf, wien
Lightning consultation: klaus pokorny, wien
Acoustics: di haigner david, wien
Building technology: zentraplan planungsgmbh, wien
‘Seating trees’ gfk: sforum kunsstofftechnik, werner schaeberle, de- 73779 deizisau
‘Seating trees’ fabric: light tech gmbH schnurrer anton a-8262 ilz
Carpentry: tischlerei wiederschwinger gmbh 9500 villach

Gross floor area: 800 m²
Competition: Jan 2010
Start of constructioin: Jun 2010
Completion: Sep 2010

Photographs: Hertha Hurnaus

TMW Technisches Museum Wien images / information from querkraft architekten

querkraft architekten

Museum Building Designs

Location: Technical Museum Vienna