Project Entry 2017 for Europe
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Roman settlement excavation center Augusta Raurica, Augst, Switzerland
Pragmatic yet expressive, the building offers flexibility and a clear identity to a growing cultural institution that serves as a caretaker of Swiss heritage. A long, horizontal form floats above the ancient ruins, a single economical spatial system that allows for change and differentiation, while distributing weight evenly over a transfer plate. The linearity allows for ease of expansion and the assurance that at any given moment the building will appear complete.
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Roman settlement excavation center Augusta Raurica, Augst, Switzerland
Visual transparency in the field condition promotes mutual awareness across the departments and builds a common identity for an institution that had been physically disaggregated for too long. The process from the discovery of an artefact to its eventual archiving in the collection becomes part of an exposed sequence of collaborations between departments that occupy this common grid.
Last updated: March 21, 2017 Augst, Switzerland
Flexibility and evolution
The ability of the building to adapt with the changing needs of the future is central to the concept of the project. The collection of artifacts, currently at 1.7 million, grows daily. At the same time, the nature of the different departments, from archaeology and conservation, to research and marketing, have also evolved and will continue to do so as new technologies and working methods become available. An organizational system of alternating structural bands allows individual rooms to expand or contract while ensuring clear circulation for people, artifacts, and technical services. At the same time, the linearity of the system allows the construction to be easily phased and extended over time while always appearing complete at any given moment.
Economy of means
The robust industrial character, celebrating storage as display, gives the institution a clear identity despite their financial constraints. Ordinary, durable materials like corrugated steel are elevated into expressive surfaces. Inside, the lightweight steel structure and tectonic assembly provides spatial expression and allows for easy disassembly, adaptation, and recycling. In the two-storey office and research area, voids and clerestories bring light and fresh air into the deep floor plate, lowering the energy consumption. A combination of natural and passive ventilation of the offices through a pressurized corridor, as well as discrete climate zones for the artifacts means a very compact and efficient mechanical system despite the depth of the building.
Heritage and society
Our history and culture define us as a people and institutions like this exist to give us common ground. Its impact is both local and national, providing public programs for schools and families that also help the local economy. Yet Augusta Raurica is currently facing severe budget limitations as politicians debate the necessity of funding “old rocks”. Their present situation of departments dispersed in various substandard spaces across town limits their ability to function, putting the artifacts and the institution at risk. The project provides not only an internal identity for the institution, fostering formal and informal exchanges necessary for a common mission, but also a face to the outside, presenting it as a depository of cultural goods and an anchor for the local community.