National Museum of Contemporary Art in Podgorica, Montenegro – LAND part of winning team!

The Ministry of Spatial Planning, Urbanism, and State Property of Montenegro announced that the group led by the Milan/ London-based practice a-fact and composed of LAND, Maffeis Engineering, and Charcoalblue has won the International Competition for “conceptual architectural design of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Natural History Museum and Park of Arts & Culture with associated cultural facilities” in Podgorica (Montenegro).

The jury appreciated the winning design, selected among 48 submissions from worldwide renowned practices for its “composition of the three distinct yet related entities emerging gracefully from the riverbank landscape and creating a strong landmark for the city—a civic destination for both residents and visitors. The proposal is inspired by the remarkable nature of Montenegro; the stone cladding pays homage to the encircling mountains while establishing a new iconic architectural language that enhances the park and river scenery”.

The landscape design, with its blue-green infrastructure, starts with an analysis of the site to incorporate existing values and improve the park’s biodiversity with the retention of 290 trees, the addition of 532 new trees of different species and 900 shrubs. In addition, the museum park’s connections to the city are emphasised with a focus on the riverfront and improved usability for citizens. The choices positively impact the overall project’s environmental performance regarding carbon sequestration, oxygen production and particulate abatement. “We have positioned a vision of a nature-positive architecture that generates a new river landscape and thus connects the river with the city. The project contributes to river regeneration within the European Nature Restoration Law,” explains Andreas Kipar, founder and CEO of LAND.

What the buildings take away from the land is returned with a generous green roof that merges with the landscape and offers a new natural outdoor gathering place with beautiful views over the riverwalk, as we can see in the beautiful images produced by emme works.