Piraeus Antiquities Museum Entry

In collaboration with Studio Touraine, Tajima Open Design Office, and ARUP, the international firm Sériès et Sériès unveiled its entry to the international architectural competition “Piraeus Cultural Coast – Museum of Underwater Antiquities” in Piraeus, Greece. The proposal aims to reactivate the port into a social and cultural hub, while preserving the initial atmosphere of the industrial context. The building has a sustainable approach as it has been equipped with the system for natural filtration of collected storm and grey water from sinks and toilets, later released clean to the public dry docks. More details from the architect come after the jump.

Courtesy of Studio Touraine

Project Description from the Architects:

We believe in the effect of the extraordinary.We believe that the key to a successful museum lies in its ability to inspire visitors, create wonder, and enhance experience beyond the the common and easily consumed in favor of the stimulating, the daring, and the whimsical. We see this project as a signal of hope for the future of the city by introducing a tangible energy. The rebirth of an industrial icon. The proposal aims to reactivate the port into a social and cultural destination for the whole metropolis and create an inter-nodal destination between land and sea.

Courtesy of Studio Touraine

The re-branding of a 1950 building as a receptacle for a Museum of Underwater Antiquities addressing Greek Antiquities creates a unique chance. We felt it was more logical to emphasize the existing industrial building then to create a completely new structure. We did this by extraction, to reveal the inner working of the original silos and by addition through placing the program atop the building. This unveils the existing beauty of the silos, its concrete roughness, its modern simplicity and industrial function and accentuates it with a reflective programmatic crown of glass and gold mylar micro perf.