BASEL, SWITZERLAND, 6 September 2011 – The Museum der Kulturen Basel re-opens to the public after two years of reconstruction, refurbishment and expansion. In 2001, Herzog & de Meuron were commissioned to design much needed additional exhibition space to accommodate one of Europe’s most important ethnologic collections with holdings of more than 300’000 objects. Several strategies were used to give the museum, which lay hidden in a previously neglected backyard in the Old Town, a new visibility: Firstly, a new 600sqm column-free gallery was placed on the top floor. Consisting of irregular folds clad in blackish green ceramic tiles, the roof resonates with the medieval roofscape in which it is embedded while functioning at the same time as a clear sign of renewal in the heart of the neighborhood. Secondly, part of the courtyard was lowered, and gently inclined stairs lead down to the reception in the lowest storey of the museum. Here the foundation is cut open along the entire width of the building and welcomes visitors to enter. Finally, hanging plants and climbing vines are mounted under the eaves of the cantilevered roof above. These plants together with the architectural interventions give the museum a distinct new identity.
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