architectures david tajchman received an honorable mention for his proposal 'stealth'
for the competition to design the new maribor museum in slovenia.



slovenian lacework tradition
the external enveloppe uses a pattern shown in various treatments. perforated, it works
as a brise - soleil and filters natural light for exhibitions spaces. on floors the same
pattern is used but in relief, making surfaces non-slippery, especially on the walkable
roof. the perforated material is also used in ceilings to hide technical elements like air
conditioning and ventilation systems.







the project consists of fragmented carspaces on roofs, facades and ceilings of external
covered spaces. like a stealth, the project is inserted in the city in direct visual
and morphologic relation with its context.



the pixelated pattern is also used for signage in the entire museum. set as a roof cover,
the holes stock rainwater, recycled for the building needs.



exhibition spaces are varied in height, width and length. they all offer different
conditions of light, mostly natural light and a system of occultation allows to convert
the spaces into black rooms. in both museum departments, a structural elements
contains technical elements like lighting, electricity or air conditioning. it also contains
spaces for stocking materials. removable partition walls slip from those structural
elements to subdivide the exhibition space.



staircase organisation
the inclined condition of the museum's site has driven the project implementation
and organisation. elevating the museum galleries at level one offers a covered public
space on ground floor and allows a ramp connection from the upper side to the roof
of the project. the museum is thus accessible from the river and the elevated back side
of the site. learning from maribor urban organisation along the drava, the project
operates by gradually going up or down volumetrically. a staircase working as a daily
city room, crossing and supporting the entire museum complex is the key point of
the proposal.






night view


side elevation


front elevation


floor plan



floor plan

floor plan








maribor is well located, at the crosspoint of alps, adriatic and the balkans. venice,
vienna, graz or budapest are all at a close distance by car or by train from maribor,
which means that the new maribor art gallery will be part of an eastern network of art
cities. with the 2012 european capital label, the short distance from other big museum
cities, visitors and tourists will probably stop by maribor for new reasons.


location of the museum

the project frees the existing and inclined ground level, connecting the drava bank with
the upper side of the neighborhood. people pass through the covered ground floor, an open
public space for outdoor protected activities of the UGM. in this way, the project aims to
encourage visual connections between the old and the modern city. like a drava bank extension,
the ground continues under the museum offering various programmatic events emerging
like ground distortions.


autonomous program elements

the new museum gallery gathers various program elements with different scheduled
activities and opening hours. every element of the program has its own external access.
the ground floor and second floor are freely accessible from outside, permitting direct
independent access and different schedule openings.




project info:
stealth - new maribor museum
architecture competition

place: maribor, slovenia
programme: museum for visual arts
area: 15000 m2
year: february 2010
client: ugm
architect: david tajchman
intern: luke izri
results: 4th prize - honorable mention