Design Museum Holon | Ron Arad Architects

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Huge bands of Cor-Ten weathering steel wrap and twist, move in and out, suggesting and dictating movement through this, the Design Museum Holon of Israel. Designed by Ron Arad Architects and located in the city of Holon, a few miles south of Tel Aviv, it is Israel’s first museum dedicated to Design, and its many manifestations. There is a total floor area of 4,090m²; it was built for some £11.1m ($17.6m); and all of this money was public funded!

These huge bands which are the exterior character of the museum, are all-in-all over a kilometer in length. Created in northern Italy, they were shipped in parts to Israel for assembly. They weave around the building acting as a spine, encompassing two staggered floors and an exterior sculptured ramp. At times they move as one, structurally supporting parts of the building, at others, they are separate, giving a them a sense of freedom and independence of identity. From within, visitors will always have a partial unobstructed view of these bands, they become a sort of symbol for the ethos of the place and a constant image in the mind.

The volume which is held by the iconic bands is comprised of two primary galleries which offer unique and versatile possibilities for exhibition. The main gallery is some 500m² and makes use of Israel’s abundant natural light, which filters into the space by way of layered ‘corduroy’ arrangement of light reflectors hung from the ceiling. Accompanying the main gallery is a more intimate 200m² ‘black box’ style gallery

By:Matt Davis