Mudam
The Contemporary Art Museum of Luxembourg

Description

The architecture of the museum is intended as a dialogue between the natural and historical context of its site. In its orientation it represents a link between the past (the former Fort Thüngen and the historic city of Luxembourg), the present and the future (the European district of Kirchberg). With its neighbouring cultural institutions that include the Musée Dräi Eechelen, the Philharmonic Concert Hall by Christian de Portzamparc, and the Place de l’Europe by Ricardo Bofill, Mudam is an iconic architectural landmark of Luxembourg City.

The building is spread over three levels of 4,000 m2 of surface area dedicated to the museum's exhibitions and collection. The simple volumes and generous spaces and the play between interior and exterior with views onto the surrounding Park Dräi Eechelen are covered with an audacious glass canopy. I. M. Pei's use of the honey-coloured limestone known as Magny Doré endows the building with a distinctive luminosity animated by subtle plays of light and shadows across the day and the seasons.

The Park Dräi Eechelen was designed by landscape architect Michel Desvigne, for which he was awarded the Luxembourg Prize for Architecture in 2011. Desvigne’s design is distinguished by its minimalist composition of trees and paving that gently slopes from the urban Place de l'Europe to the natural surroundings of the historical Fort Thüngen.