Museum of Polish History

Aesthetic Approach



Due to the situation on the Skarpa Warszawska and the immediate vicinity of the Zamek Ujazdowski the urbanistic and aesthetic approach is that to create an artificial landscape with the objective of

- reconstructing the edge of the Skarpa across the trench of the Trasa Lazienkowska in respect of landscape and its function as esplanade

- not competing with the building of the Zamed Ujazdowski

- establishing a relationship to the existing buildings and surface topography

- paying tribute to the surrounding green area

- nevertheless creating a landmark with a strong identity.


The aesthetic approach of creating an artificial landscape is not only pursued in the exterior design by utilizing folded planes to create the building skin but also in the interior design by constructing part of walls and ceilings by using the same means of construction, thus creating exciting spaces and multi-usable closures (eg. projection screens).

The aesthetic antithesis to this idea of levitating folded planes is that of a cryptic architecture, realised by excavating the basement – the proper exhibition zone.

Visitors gain access into the building by a small gap between the exterior pavement perpetuating into and through the building and the folded planes of the levitating covering.

Visitors and passerbys are allowed to gain insight down to the exhibition by this gap - thus creating an exciting view into the past presented in an “archaeological mode”.



Functionality



Visitors gain access into the generous entrance and transition hall from the western forecourt as well as the eastern esplanade on the edge of the Skarpa.

This hall – constituting the interior continuation of the outdoor spaces - incorporates the void of the forum as main nucleus of the project.

The main public spaces as well as the main vertical circulation facilities are arranged here, thus creating an important junction-area.
The forum itself, being situated in the basement, comprises main functions like the media library, the kids zone, education and seminar zone and constitutes the initial point for the visit of the permanent and the temporary exhibitions.

The exhibition areas are very flexible areas, by their layout providing the potential for a wide range of forms of presentation.