An inhabited landscape lifted from the ground taking advantage of the existing ground conditions.

The proposed hybrid structure of MPH is a footbridge, park and building, all three integrated and coherent with the surrounding park environment. Our proposal for the MPH facility is a synergy of nature and history and was inspired by the peculiar Polish topography of gently rolling fields and plains. Our inclination is towards creating a Museum of History dug underground where the local historical values are naturally preserved. The morphology of MPH was influenced by the idea of history as a process of constant transformation.

We emphasize the park’s great significance for the natural and cultural environment of Warsaw by preserving as much of the existing greenery as possible, enriching it with a green roofscape and blocking the intrusion of cars into the park; access to the new building will be from the existing main road Trasa Lazienkowska.

Our design restores and improves its slope stability by covering the Trasa Lazienkowska and connecting its two embankments with a park terrace and the hybrid structure of the MPH. We put in use the large cubic capacity opened from the removal of the landslide and located the volumes of new building in there. The proposed structure shall perform both supporting and securing functions for the slope. A double-height lighter exhibition zone is positioned on top of the trench while the four-level zone is embedded in the hillside of Trasa Lazienkowska trench. The building above shall be designed with a sound-insulated extra thick floor slab and exterior walls limiting the penetration of noise. The position of the building over the trench of Trasa eases its access to existing municipal networks, utilities, and infrastructure.

MPH access is possible from two points of entry; one for park pedestrians and bikers and another one for public transportation visitors. Both access entries merge into one service center/hub/ lobby/check point on the main floor, with utilities like cloak room, reception desk, children’s zone & bookstore.

The main storey is located 6 metres above the Trasa trench on the level of Zamek Ujazdowski entry. It contains the main entrance, forum, multimedia info zone, cloak room, double-height exhibition galleries, children’s zone, audience halls, and media library. The entire floor podium of the exhibition galleries is ramped with a gentle slope of 1.5% to follow the natural slope of Trasa Lazienkowska. The interconnected galleries of interwoven epochs take visitors into a complex non-linear loop/labyrinth in reverse chronological order. The intermediate level of Restaurant/Café is two meters below the main lobby level at the bottom of the ramp; through structural glazing, it offers spectacular views down from Wisla area.

Amenities such as the children’s zone, lecture halls and media library are situated into a common hub on the castle/park level which can be shared by neighbouring facilities. Administration, management, research offices and laboratories of varying heights occupy the level above the main galleries and below the green roof.

The MPH structure is a continuation of the park landscape, while keeping a transparent look through the oblique and ‘unstable’ planes of structural glass curtain wall ensuring surrounding views. The shared representative plaza in front of both facilities better connects the new Museum with the castle. The new museum is lower than the castle, rising from the earth like an artificial hill to avoid overshadowing, disturbing or blocking the castle and other historic monuments in the area. The mixed use Green Roof is in a panorama deck, a compelling classroom for extended education and debate and an additional outdoor exhibition gallery.

ARCHITECT: Design Initiatives, Culver City, California, USA. CLIENT: Museum of Polish History. LOCATION: Warsaw, Poland. DESCRIPTION: Cultural / Museum. PROJECT TEAM: Vlado Valkof – project architect, Anne Valkof, Stanislav Christov – designers, Assen Balkanski – rendering. STATUS: competition entry. AREA: 43,365 sqm. DATE: 2009. No part of this web site may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of Morfae and the copyright owner.