Sorø Art Museum

Type
Museum

Address
Storgade 9, Sorø, Denmark

Area
Renovation 810 m²
New building 1,420 m²

Client
Sorø Art Museum

Engineer
Alectia A/S

Year
Construction 2010-2012
1st prize won in invited competition 2009

Awards and nominations
2013 RIBA European Award
2011 Sorø Conservation Society

Sorø Art Museum is a modern museum in the heart of an old town. The project shows how history can be made contemporary while preserving the existing values. The museum has become a vibrant place and a cultural center in the local area.

The project involves the renovation of Sorø Art Museum’s listed property by the city’s main street, along with an extension with new rooms for changing exhibitions and for the museum’s collection of modern art. Furthermore the extension houses rooms for the school service, a lecture hall, café and shop with the purpose of opening up the museum and making it a cultural centre in the local community.

Mirroring the historic buildings
The new facility mirrors the historic buildings adding a larger wing and a middle building, in a composition which surrounds the museum’s courtyard and creates a harmonic balance between old and new.

The ground floor houses storerooms and a new exhibition hall projecting below the ground, and draws daylight from the skylights in the museum courtyard.

The simple shapes of the new building are covered with specially developed tile shells in dialogue with the traditional masonry, yet still adding the material a new stature and an eventful play of colours ranging from red and ochre to slate grey.

The interior presents itself with surfaces and details in a rustic, industrial appearance, chosen with the purpose of promoting the experience of the museum as a vibrant workshop and place to be. At the same time this choice of interior has made it possible to realize the construction of the complex facility within a tight budget.