Sordo Madaleno, along with építész stúdió and Buro Happold, has won the international competition to design the 43,000-square-meter New Collection Centre of the Hungarian Museum of Natural History in Debrecen. This marks the Mexican practice’s first European cultural commission.
The winning design focuses on conservation, research, and scientific stewardship, with the building serving as an extension of the staff’s stewardship. The architecture frames objects as embodiments of life-worlds and landscapes, fostering reciprocal relationships.
A defining element is the layered brick facade, using soils from different Hungarian regions to create subtle tonal variations. This references the country’s geological history and the museum’s scope, spanning geology, fossils, animal life, human activity, and ecology.
Image Courtesy: DESIGNBOOM
