OMA's David Gianotten presents the Winning Design of Museum Egizio in Turin

OMA Managing Partner – Architect David Gianotten: “The OMA team is proud to have been appointed as the architectural designer for the transformation of Museo Egizio. The vast collection, the rich history that it embodies, and the vision for the bicentenary offers inspiration for us to reinforce the cultural significance of Museo Egizio through architecture. The transformed Museo Egizio will be even more connected with the city and publicly accessible, complementing the museum’s ambition to foster public engagement. We compliment the director and his team for their vision for an open and contextual museum.”

OMA’s design creates a new covered courtyard known as Piazza Egizia and a series of connected urban rooms within the existing museum, opening the cultural space to all. Each urban room has its unique scale, function, and quality. A central Spine connects the six urban rooms together, and also to both of the museum’s entrances on Via Accademia and Via Duse. New openings have been introduced to the current façade along Via Duse, further drawing the public into the museum and the Piazza Egizia – a double-level, multifunctional courtyard that showcases the museum’s original architecture and traces of interventions over time.

The Piazza Egizia and other urban rooms are open beyond working hours for visitors with or without tickets. Their public nature offers possibilities for the museum to extend its opening hours. A selection of Museo Egizio’s artefacts is on display for the general public’s initial encounters with the museum collection.

Museo Egizio President Evelina Christillin and Director Christian Greco: “Celebrating the 200th anniversary of the museum is not only an exercise of memory, but it also means planning for the future. OMA’s architectural design was founded upon the new vision of the museum’s more articulated and multifaceted new vision: a research institution, an inclusive place, and a space where we work to dissolve economic and social barriers that hinder people’s holistic development – as Article 3 of the Italian Constitution states. The idea to create a covered courtyard stems from the desire to create a new agora – which is returned to the community. At the same time, the Temple of Ellesyia donated by Egypt to Italy is also free for public visits. Since the renovation of the museum in 2015, we have constantly offered a variety of exhibition offerings, and investigated novel ways to tell stories not only about the material culture, but also about the hidden history of the artefacts and civilization of Ancient Egypt. For the bicentenary, we have decided to reflect on the role of the Egyptian: is it a place of preservation or destruction? What is it lacking 200 years since its establishment? It is from these questions that the new museum will come to light.”