Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) has unveiled its design for the new Hungarian Natural History Museum in Debrecen. The 23,000m² museum, developed in collaboration with Vikár és Lukács Építés Stúdió, Museum Studio, and TYPSA, will replace the existing museum in Budapest.
Located on a former sports ground at the northern edge of Debrecen’s Great Forest, the museum features three overlapping ribbons that rise from the forest floor, shaping a public and scientific destination. The mass timber structure and charred timber façade blend into the park surroundings, while the sloping roofscape invites public access and offers expansive city views.
“Our design is conceived as an intersection of paths and lineages,” said Bjarke Ingels, Founder and Creative Director, BIG. “The result is a manmade hill in a forest clearing; geometrically clear yet softly organic – an appropriate home for the wonders of the natural world.”
The museum’s design integrates open plazas, winding forest paths, and framed views through and over the building. The building features five exhibition wings dedicated to permanent galleries and one for temporary exhibitions and public programs, arranged in a radial layout.
“We envisioned the Hungarian Natural History Museum as an integrated part of its environment, both shaped by and shaping the landscape around it,” said Hanna Johansson, Partner, BIG. “The museum draws on the thermal mass of the ground and integrates on-site energy systems, including geothermal loops and photovoltaic panels, to ensure a stable indoor climate year-round.”
Image Courtesy: archdaily.com
