New York architect Diller Scofidio + Renfro (DS+R) has been picked to design a home for the Hungarian Museum of Transport, one of the oldest of its kind in Europe.
Diller Scofidio + Renfro was chosen ahead of submissions from Bjarke Ingels Group, Caruso St John Architects, David Chipperfield Architects and Foster + Partners.
Relocated from its former location in Városliget (City Park), the museum will be rebuilt on a 7ha site in the Northern Maintenance Depot in KÅ‘bánya, a former industrial district of Budapest.
The new site will be located close to existing transport infrastructure, such as trunk railroads, tram lines, pedestrian walkways and bikeways.
DS+R’s design includes a forecourt that will contain outdoor galleries, a picnic area, a café, a children’s playground, and outdoor spaces for the community use of the Törekvés Cultural Centre.
DS+R says it has used “the idea of ground transportation as a central organising principle” for the project, with “double-height spaces” spliced through the ground. Many large vehicles displayed at the museum can be viewed from underneath for the first time, and a hovering mezzanine will provide aerial views of exhibitions.
A floating “second ground” above the gallery hall roof will contain educational spaces, the museum café, and views of the post-industrial landscapes of KÅ‘bánya and Józsefváros.
The site will also house the Diesel Hall, built between 1958 and 1962, which DS+R describes as an “example of mid-century modern industrial architecture”, and contains a vast hallway of nine parallel naves, each 110m in length, which can be adapted for exhibitions and storage of large museum items like railway wagons, tramway cars and buses.
Images courtesy of Diller Scofidio + Renfro
