Architecture
The Neue Nationalgalerie opened on 15 September 1968 (Mies van der Rohe was forced to miss the opening with an asthma attack). It was the first building completed as a part of Berlin’s Kulturforum, a cluster of buildings dedicated to culture and the fine arts. The second and final museum of the architect's career (the first being the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston), its architecture is, according to its admirers, a powerful and expressive object in itself. Mies' design for the building was essentially the same as his headquarters for Bacardi - an unrealized building made of concrete - but rendered in steel.
With some 53,820 square feet (5,000 square metres) of exhibition space, nearly all of the museum's collections are located within a stone podium, solid to protect the art from damaging daylight, partially in the ground of the sloping site, with windows only on one side facing a walled sculpture garden. A minimalist steel and glass pavilion, located on the paved roof plaza above the podium, serves as the entrance lobby and the special exhibit gallery. The pavilion, while a small part of the museum, is the primary architectural expression. Its structure consists of a large steel roof deck supported by eight exterior columns, creating an effect of a shelter with a single floating plane. Large glass sheets that define the interior space are set far back from the roof edges, framed by delicate steel mullions. The glass walls and the elimination of all interior columns emphasizes the idea of free space as a place for artists to present their work, unencumbered by the necessity of a shelter to protect visitors and contents from the elements. Natural light transmitted through these walls reflects off the dark, highly polished floor, emphasizing the extension of space beyond the boundaries of the interior, a symbolic removal of solid walls as barriers. The podium roof plaza is itself another open air gallery for public sculpture, extending the exhibit space of the pavilion to the outside.
The unusual natural illumination, coming from around and below the viewer rather than above, and the continuous suggestion of motion in the ceiling, combine to shock the viewer out of his or her usual way of seeing, perhaps preparing the audience to bring a fresh eye to the art housed below. Yet, at the same time, the simplicity and rigorously pure geometry of the space's rectangular forms makes the design seem tranquil, rather than obtrusive. This careful balance of free-flowing space and a stable arrangement of architectural components is typical of Mies van der Rohe's mature style.
The Neue Nationalgalerie has had no thorough modernization since its inauguration. In 2012 it was announced that British architect David Chipperfield will oversee a major renovation of the building. In a non-competitive selection processes common for public contracts in Germany, his firm was chosen for the contract out of 24 architectural firms based on a two-stage negotiation process. The museum requires new security and fire technology and the shop and cafe will be renovated. The renovation will start in 2015 and last three years, during which time the museum will be closed.
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