Gulbenkian

I just got back from Lisbon where I saw, amongst other things, the Gulbenkian Museum. Ok… it has very little to do with interactive architecture, but I was so inspired by it that I decided to write about it anyway.

The thing that really struck me walking through the museum was the balance throughout. I don’t mean in a the-building-is-almost-falling-down-but-not kinda way: I’m referring to an unusually great combination of art and architecture, and how it felt.

The museum building was designed by a team made up of the architects Ruy Jervis d’Athouguia, Pedro Cid and Alberto Pessoa and hints (rather strongly) at inspiration from Mies van der Rohe. The building’s minimalist concrete form sits in a beautifully landscaped park, concealing bunker-like yet welcoming rooms of marble and wood floors and ceilings. Blinds obscuring the view to outside through floor to ceiling windows reduce the outside image almost to paintings.

Inside, one of the most amazing art collections I’ve ever seen is actually given the space it deserves. The minimalist architecture is the perfect backdrop for an intricately crafted collection which includes everything from Egyptian treasures to Chinese and Japanese tapestries and ceramics, to Rembrants, Rubens’, and Monets. I’m not an art historian, by any stretch of the imagination, but clearly only the best was good enough for this collector.

That one man managed to gather this collection is unbelievable. That it has all ended up together in this setting is even more amazing. In a time when I’m thinking more and more about interactive and reactive installations, and the opportunities an increasing number of permanent commissions will bring, 2 hours walking through the Gulbenkian has reminded me in the significance of balance. Although completely static, save the variation of the small amount of natural light entering the museum, I would dare describe the resulting feeling of being in this museum as immersive. The combination of light, minimal architecture, a subtle connection to the surrounding landscape and an extremely detailed collection of artworks, drew everyone in a way I’ve rarely experienced. I could go on about this forever but I won’t – I guess I just look forward to seeing more and more interactive installations that find this balance too.

3 comments June 10th, 2009