Museum of Textile Industry
1808-ARV-PT-2016
Architects: Ana Rita Vale, André Calvete
Client: Espaço da Arquitectura
Status: Competition (2016)
Location: Riba de Ave, Portugal
Coordinates: 41.393029, -8.397894
Climate: Oceanic / maritime, Temperate
Materials: Concrete, Metal
Environments: Industrial, Riverside, Urban
Visualizer: Studio
Scale: Large
Types: Cultural, Museum, Refurbishment

The competition was aiming for a new idea to renovate an industrial complex. Such demand required understanding of what it means and represents a factory. In order to become a museum of the textile industry, «Ferreira Sampaio & Cª Lda.» would have to be the factory to have the role of exposing the materials that tell the history about the sector and the place. For this, the building would have the responsibility of revealing to the visitors the atmosphere of a factory production, maintaining characteristics of other times while introducing new routines. Part of the building was preserved. There was a process of choosing the space that best corresponded to that environment. The building formerly intended for spinning and other machinery, in this proposal, houses the entire exhibition area, serves as a link between the past – the factory – and the present Museum and, due to its scale, geometry, structure and lighting, was the one chosen for a deeper rehabilitation.

Concept

The chosen building, whose roof presents itself with a constant rhythm of skylights, is one of the elements that forms the concept of the proposal. Next to this building, it was placed a duplicated version of the original one that was extended and rotated, in order to have a greater impact in the territorial context, attracting more visitors to this forgotten place. The new building is the screen that frames the old chimney in the east façade. In the façade facing the river, the red tiles fill the gaps between the window panels, as seen on the roof of the existing construction. This gesture aims to provide a more unifying language between the old and the new building.

The new complex

The design of the complex divided the plot in three parts. The first one is formed by a platform with a parking lot that ensures the 250 car spaces needed not only for the Museum but also for the «Narciso Ferreira Theater» located in the surroundings. The second part is the cycle path that separates the first and third. The last part is formed by the platforms belonging to the Museum and the squares that go along with the river and maintain the original ground levels of the previous buildings. This allows the new museum complex to preserve traces of the past in spite of the removal of most of its buildings.

Programme

This proposal covers a greater area of public space than private space. In other words, the visitor has access to most of the complex. The organization of the museum has two moments: one by extension and another by stacking. The first moment, concerning the existing building, will serve mainly the exhibition. The second, inserted in the new building formed by six floors, confines the administration and services.

Paths

As a new Museum of Textile Industry, visitors will walk through machinery and other objects of the sector, in constant fluxes, reminding an assembly line. Therefore, it is proposed a continuous path in the exhibition areas that operate individually as well as a single path that connects all the exhibitions. The permanent exhibition is in the center of the building, at the same height as the cargo areas, facilitating the movement of the machines. On the other hand, the temporary exhibition functions with slight ramps that allow a progressive reading of the amplitude of the old industrial space as the crowd goes up. Lastly, the public access to the reserved area is also done through a continuous circulation, this time around the chimney. This type of system allows all paths to have the same beginning and the same end.

Competition: Revitalization of Sampaio Ferreira factory | Post date: 16/02/2017 | Views: 5.289