Renowned Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron have revealed detailed plans for a new museum in Lusail City, Qatar. The museum will house the world’s largest collection of Orientalist art. The museum is conceptualised as a vertically layered souk.
The Lusail Museum located on Al Maha island, will house the largest collection of Orientalist paintings and photography in the world. It will further explore the movement of people and ideas across the globe in present and past times. The museum aims to bridge a divided world through dialogue, art, and innovation.
It places itself at the heart of learning and mediation on critical global issues by providing opportunities to scholars, artists, policy-makers, and others through discussions and debates. This is also reflected in the design of the museum. The museum is conceived as a vertically layered souk or miniature city co-habiting within a single building.
The design concept of the museum is inspired by convergence and conversation and the building is conceived as a vertically layered souk, or miniature city contained within a single building.
The design
The museum will be situated at the southern end of the island and will serve as a prominent landmark. The design adopts a circular layout, which carries both symbolic significance and reflects a deliberate nod to the architectural heritage of the Middle East and Doha.
The five-storey building’s structure is influenced by three intersecting spheres, shaping and dividing it into two distinct sections: one resembles a full moon and the other takes on the form of a crescent moon that envelops it. The double curvatures inspired by these spheres create an internally illuminated crescent-shaped street. This naturally lit thoroughfare connects the museum’s entrances to the central lobby and various public amenities such as a library, auditorium, shop, café, and prayer space.
The building exterior is designed to adapt to its coastal setting and appears to be a part of the landscape. The exterior is rough, earthen, sand-like and resilient. Daylight enters the interior spaces through deeply recessed windows cut out of the façade, protecting the interiors from direct sunlight. The view of the surrounding sea and city of Lusail is visible throughout the building.
The architects are keen on working with artisans and craftspeople from the local and regional communities to integrate vernacular knowledge and materials in the design. Within the solid concrete structure of the building, contrasting spaces are strategically incorporated to offer visitors a diverse range of scales, material textures, and sensory encounters. These include a central sculptural stair made of polished plaster, a reflective metal prayer space, a library adorned with wooden panels, an intimate auditorium with soft furnishings, and various cushioned niches featuring a mix of materials such as wood, textiles, metals, and ceramic tiles, each contributing unique haptic qualities.
The exhibition spaces on the gallery floors vary in shape and size depending on their location, yet all are designed to accommodate a range of exhibition types. At the top gallery floor, four abstract replicas from significant historical buildings serve as anchor spaces: The dome from Murat III’s bedroom pavilion in the Palace of Topkapi in Istanbul (1579), the dome of the Jameh Mosque in Natanz (1320), the Ablution fountain from the courtyard of Ibn Tulun Mosque in Cairo (1296), and the Aljafaria dome in Saragossa (1050). Each dome exhibits distinct geometry and ornamentation reflective of its cultural heritage.
The dome is chosen as the architectural typology for these four rooms because it is both universal and specific. Domes have appeared across various cultures throughout history, yet each has developed variations influenced by local geography and culture, making them universally recognizable yet culturally specific. Further, pendentives, cross arches, muqarnas, and squinches characterise the selected dome typologies. These architectural elements break the sequence of more traditional galleries, offering unique curatorial and educational opportunities and unexpected spatial experiences.
Herzog and de Meuron
Herzog & de Meuron Basel Ltd. is a Swiss architecture firm headquartered in Basel, founded by Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron. The firm has gained international acclaim for its innovative and distinctive architectural designs that often blend elements of modernism with a deep appreciation for context, materiality, and cultural significance.
Herzog & de Meuron’s projects have received numerous awards and accolades, including the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2001, the highest honours in the field of architecture. Some of their most notable works include the Tate Modern in London, the National Stadium (Bird’s Nest) in Beijing for the 2008 Olympics, and the Elbphilharmonie concert hall in Hamburg.