Museum for Children

The building lies in the Augarten Park of Graz, nestled in the very landscape it begins to shape. Two-thirds of the sub-levels are embedded in the earth, through which the entrance ramp to the ground level rises, one meter above the terrain. The gently sloping meadow rises and sinks from the original earth, connecting to the levels of the building and continuing within the interior. The cantilever of the upper levels and the surrounding band of windows which course along the new character of the landscape visually bring the park inside and interweave the building with its surroundings. The required workshop, auditorium, exhibition spaces, quiet zones, administration level and storage all within an area of 1600 m², are resolved through the building's primary concept: a series of open, continuous rooms. Through the careful choice in material and the building's inclusion of nature, such as the water basin and planting garden, a sensory architecture is conveyed.