comac organizes the eras for berlin natural science museum proposal

comac organizes the eras for berlin natural science museum proposal
image © comac

french architecture firm comac has visualized ‘berlin natural science museum’ in a scheme that divides the program between a public space connected to the city and an exhibition center, creating an internal cavity. the site becomes an urban landmark that links the university district, the train station and the zoo, above which floats the gallery cube. the science museum creates a tension between the earth and the sky, the past and the future, while the present time is being represented by light, crossing the layers of the human history.

bird’s eye view
image © comac

the museum welcomes visitors through the underground entrance, where an atrium is dug down a level, sloping away from the green esplanade. the underground floor — delineated by six patios — contains all the facilities that serve the museums: administration, education, research center, library, storage and technical space. 

museum entrance
image © comac

the exhibition spaces are spread out around an atrium, which aims to recreate the prehistoric cave. the floors create porosity by weaving in and out, playing with the program of the museum, and allowing a theatrical light to filter through the space. on the top floor, the auditorium encloses the cube and offers a panoramic terrace oriented to the zoo. the proposal won third place in a 2014 competition hosted by the architectural workshop in rome.

street view
image © comac

model 01
image © comac

axonometric view of model
image © comac

model in elevation
image © comac

diagrams
image © comac

plans
image © comac

project info:

venture: organic city museum – berlin natural science museum
architect: comac
client: architecture workshop in rome (AWR) competition
surface: 23 700 m²
location: berlin, germany

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.