The museum is conceived as a confluence of the park and the city nature and architecture bookending the Charpak Park along with the city hall. Like the mixture of two incompatible substances oil and vinegar the urban pavement and the parks turf flow together in a mutual embrace forming pockets of terraces overlooking the park and elevating islands of nature above the city.
BIG proposed leaning the facades of the building outwards until the inclination reaches the average angle of the sun, the facades dodge the sun rays and rest in the shade of the building itself. Due to the relatively high average position of the sun on the sky the total sun exposure can be reduced dramatically at relatively small inclinations. The resulting building volume is a sort of inverted pyramid with the apex buried deep in the desert sand.
Tallinn municipality decided to consolidate its public governance and service entities into a new town hall. Located to the north of the medieval city center set within the green ring that wraps around the ancient city walls, the new town hall occupies a key position in the successful urbanization of the waterfront and offers a unique possibility of linking land and sea, old and new, public space and public institutions.
BIG was engaged to create symbiosis between old and new in both stylistic and atmospheric terms housing community activities and support rooms, a large hall that has the power to unite, inspire and create space for the parish to come together. BIGs proposal is based on the existing architecture of the church. The geometry is formed as an extension of one of the church’s four wings, with all the new functions placed at ground level.
The project includes the restoration of the Daily Express Building grade II* listed building. The headquarters of the newspaper once the epicenter of the newspaper industry and one of London’s finest Art Deco interiors will for the first time in its history be given a stand-alone status. The project will provide inclusive public access to the original art deco lobby, as well as the exterior roof amenities that include views of the surrounding city.