We have response to the restructuring and extension of the museum of modern art of Lille, which stands in a magnificent park at Villeneuve d’Ascq, mediates between past and present. The existing building, built to designs by Roland Simounet, only dates back to 1983, but it is already on the Historic monuments list.

In spite of this, rather than install the new parts at a distance, the architects chose to wrap the extension around a corner of the ‘old’ building. The project aims at reconstituting the museum as a continuous ensemble, this by adding new galleries to house a collection of Art Brut works in a travelling movement that extrapolates existing spaces.

The architecture of the extension wraps around the north and east ends of the angular brick building in a double splay of long volumes that are fluid and organic. On one hand the new wing develops in narrow folds to contain a restaurant opening onto a central patio, on the other it extends in larger folds, each of which houses one of the five Art Brut galleries.

Each fold opens at its extremity to a wide angle view onto parkland, varying the visit itinerary by moments of rest. Envelopes are sober, in plain untreated concrete, with profiles or perforations to protect large openings from too much direct sunlight.

Designed by Manuelle Gautrand Architecture

http://www.manuelle-gautrand.com/