Norwegian version (PDF 5,3 MB)

No 7 - Museum Architecture: A study of recent Norwegian museum buildings

by Hege Maria Eriksson
A summary

"A museum is a non-profit making, permanent institution in the service of society and of its development, and open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits, for purposes of study, education and enjoyment, material evidence of people and their environment." (The preceding is the definition of a museum according to the International Council of Museums [ICOM].)

What is the significance of architecture to museums, and museums to architecture? The book does not attempt to provide a single answer to this question, but does provide several answers. In Norway, more than 700 museum institutions are registered, and our society expends considerable sums of money on museum buildings, both on reconstruction and on new buildings. The museum sector has been characterised by a highly fragmented organisational structure, with different operating procedures and processes related to their different interests. According to the Report No. 22 to the Storting, “Sources of knowledge and experience” (1999-2000), or the so-called “ABM-Report”, local museum units are increasingly to be co-ordinated and organised at a regional level. In addition, institutions receiving central funding will be included in national networks. By increasing the sharing of responsibilities and premises, and enhancing co-ordination and co-operation, the aim is to improve the quality and strengthen the professional performance of museums, libraries and archives. The Norwegian Archive, Library and Museum Authority is recommending the principle that the creation of new institutions should be limited, in order to allow the strengthening of existing museums. At the same time, the museum sector is developing new types of museums and is forging new alliances, for example with educational and research institutions, the travel industry and local, national and international cultural groups. It is the role of museums to make our cultural heritage and history relevant to our own time and to inspire critical reflection and creative insight. Information and communication technology is changing the way museums function.

Being a part of the media society, the museum sector is emphasising the particular characteristic of a museum, which is a place where the public can come face-to-face with the actual artefact of interest.

The book is aimed at two very dissimilar target groups, museums and architects, whose approach to what constitutes successful museum architecture may be radically different. It is therefore considered that part of the study brief is to act as an intermediary in the exchange of ideas between these two different groups. In this way it is hoped to create a basis for mutual understanding between museums and architects when working together on the construction of new museum premises.

The study should also be of interest to the public authorities, cultural entrepreneurs, planners, the travel industry, etc. Mr. Per Kåks, previously head of ICOM’s Committee for Museum Architecture, has stated that the Committee has tried for several years to “solve some general problems in respect of museum architecture but has come to realise that this is an impossible task (…) Each museum has to be built in accordance with its particular purpose”. It is the task of architects to acquaint themselves with the function and context of each individual museum, and develop the plans accordingly. According to Mr. Kåks, “Certain elements nevertheless have general application”, in relation to museum processing, preservation and storage”. The book does not provide key solutions to designing and constructing a museum, but instead discusses some of the possibilities and limitations of museum architecture.

The first chapter discusses some of the problems associated with museum architecture, both of a general and particular nature, and examines perspectives involving history and the changing political attitudes to culture. It also looks at the aesthetic, didactic and technical aspects of museum architecture. In the second chapter, ten museum projects are presented, in text, design and photographs. Brief descriptions are provided of the functional content of museum buildings and their aesthetic and constructional engineering properties. In the following subject chapters the museums themselves come under closer scrutiny. Four main topics are discussed, with examples of museums that demonstrate relevant problems particularly well. Chapter 3 deals with location and architecture, or the relationship between buildings and their surroundings. In chapter 4, the functions of a museum are analysed, and information is given about the practical aspects of running of a museum and the allocation of space; also discussed are preservation and storage, and operation and maintenance. Chapter 5 looks at exhibitions and the exhibition halls. Finally, chapter 6 deals with project management and the building process. There is discussion of the practical and strategic procedures of preliminary planning, project development and construction, both in respect of new building and of extensions and reconstruction. To finish, a summary is given of some of the experiences of both museums and architects in respect of the erection of museum buildings.

In addition to the ten museums presented in the book, a series of museum projects both inside and outside Norway are shown, some of which are highlighted as particularly interesting examples of museum projects. The Norwegian Forest Museum, designed by the architects Duus Fiane Thorstensen / Duus Thorstensen Egeberg, presents an interesting example of how a museum can change and develop over time. This large museum has grown and acquired a number of additional buildings over a period of more than 30 years. The architect Sverre Fehn has achieved renown in Norwegian and international museum and exhibition architecture over the past 50 years, and no discussion of the subject is possible without reference to his projects. Mr. Fehn creates added interest because he puts his ideas into words, in writing and orally. His views on various museum projects can be said to constitute an entire philosophy of museums – an inspiration for many and perhaps an irritation for some. The most recent museum building discussed in the study has Sverre Fehn’s signature, but the Storhamar-barn at the Museum of Hedmark, which was designed more than 30 years ago, has also been included as a project of reference. This museum building and the exhibition as a whole are recognised as outstanding masterpieces among Norwegian architecture, but they are also controversial in respect of their role as a museum. Any discussion of the architecture of the Museum of Hedmark should as a matter of course also include the construction of the protective glass structure for the Cathedral Priory ruins, designed by the architects Lund and Slaatto.

In Norway, our ambitions for architecture are often rather down-to-earth, with little room for experimental architecture, and few traditions of the magnificent and spectacular. How to achieve the beautiful and the unique by simple means? How can museums strengthen their activity through architecture? How is it that some museums, by virtue of their architecture, become an attraction reaching beyond their role of a museum?