Kirchner Museum Davos
Ruth Carol Tighe
Indoor Environment
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The Kirchner Museum Davos (as see in the image to the left) was designed by Zurich architects Annette Gigon and Mike Guyer. This building was the first large commission for the Swiss architects. Construction began in 1990 and the museum was opened in 1992. Before they were chosen four architectural firms were invited to design the new structure and their design was chosen by a jury. The building was built to house and display the art of German expressionist painter Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Ernst Ludwig Kirchner Foundation Davos was the contractor of the structure. However, the building itself was a gift of the Benvenuta Family Foundation (18).
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Gigon and Guyer took great inspiration for the building from the local environment and architecture. They included aspects such as the climate, the natural light and the common flat-roofed Davos architecture. One of the main functions they wanted to incorporate into the design was making a link between the person viewing the architecture and the art. They completed this by making spaces for the viewers to reflect on the art work in the building. The branched foyer with open façade windows that link the four exhibition halls gives viewers a chance to reflect within the structure. Furthermore, places such as the foyer give the visitors a view of the Alpine landscape which inspired Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and his work. The architects wanted the building to give off an almost simplistic look which is very similar to the work it houses.
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The building is located in Davos in Switzerland. The buildings double height blocks with lower strcutures connecting them carries the same shape as the mountainous landscape of the area. around it. The Alpine town of Davos gave the German expressionist inspiration and retreat away from his usual busy life. He saw Davos as a second home and appreciated the natural beauty which encouraged many of his works. The town of Davos is well known for being associated with Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Near the town centre the two farmhouses where Kirchner lived and worked from still stand. However, they are not accessible to the public unlike the museum (19). Davos receives up to 16 hours of sunlight in summer and 10 hours in winter. Although this is a large range the structure has many large facades and is not overcast by any surrounding buildings which may prevent sunlight from reaching it. Davos has a subarctic climate which means it receives more intense sunlight. Since it is located near the Alpine mountains, it is a largely mountainous region with snow being a common site in the area.
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Annette Gigon and Mike Guyer are no stranger to using daylight to enhance the their architecture. The Platform Office Building was designed by Gigon and Guyer. It is a 7 storey building located in Zurich beside the railway station. A large sky light allows light to flow through the building, connecting the entrance with the office spaces on the six floors above. The mainly glass facades (shown in the image to the left) also allow light to penetrate through to the office spaces to reduce the need for artificial light as well as giving the workers a generous view of the railway station and city (20). Another notable building they have completed is the Museum Liner
in Appenzell. There are very few large vertical windows on the façade of this building. Still it receives enough light to brighten the area inside. The majority of the light comes from the angled windows on the top of the structure. Peculiarly enough the angled windows face North with only one to the end of the building facing South. The North facing windows prevent the indoor space from receiving too much intense light and instead creates a glow throughout the building. For the light from the roof to be diffusely reflected, the shingles are sandblasted stainless steel sheet plates. The grey colour and the scaly-like texture of the facade are influenced by the traditional architecture of the region Appenzell. The jiggered structure is meant to reflect the Alpine Mountains visible around it (as shown in the image to the right). Similar to the Kirchner Museum, this museum houses the work of the two painters Carl August Liner and Carl Walter Liner, both from Appenzell (21). It was originally designed to be a monographic museum.
in Appenzell. There are very few large vertical windows on the façade of this building. Still it receives enough light to brighten the area inside. The majority of the light comes from the angled windows on the top of the structure. Peculiarly enough the angled windows face North with only one to the end of the building facing South. The North facing windows prevent the indoor space from receiving too much intense light and instead creates a glow throughout the building. For the light from the roof to be diffusely reflected, the shingles are sandblasted stainless steel sheet plates. The grey colour and the scaly-like texture of the facade are influenced by the traditional architecture of the region Appenzell. The jiggered structure is meant to reflect the Alpine Mountains visible around it (as shown in the image to the right). Similar to the Kirchner Museum, this museum houses the work of the two painters Carl August Liner and Carl Walter Liner, both from Appenzell (21). It was originally designed to be a monographic museum.
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The structure uses a rather unique way to illuminate the galleries without having an intense natural light. Each hall in the building has a an almost frosted roof which allows light to filter through into the room. The roof filters the light giving more of a glow throughout the hall rather than an intense direct light through a skylight or window on the façade. The natural sunlight shines through windows located at the top of the facades. By placing the windows at the top of the building façade the light is not being blocked by the surrounding structures or the sloping terrain as much. Photo-electronic sensors are used to control the levels of sunlight reaching the indoor spaces. The sensors detect when there is too much daylight and shades operate to block off the light as needed in the area. The sensors can also detect when there’s too little light reaching the galleries. It then uses artificial illumination to create a light that is almost identical to the natural light. The idea of not having windows as such in the galleries is a rather tactical design. Ernst Ludwig Kirchner paintings are known to be colour intensive and are the focus of each gallery. Therefore, the lack of windows encourages the viewers to focus on the work without distraction from the outside. The lighting choice makes for good indoor comfort without taking away from the art by reducing the intensity the natural light is entering the room at. The image to the right shows the even distribution of the light in each gallery by filtering it through a translucent roof in each gallery.
18. Architecture: Kirchner Museum Davos [Internet]. [cited 2020 Oct 23]. Available from: https://www.kirchnermuseum.ch/en/architecture/
19. The Kirchner Museum and residences: EBSCOhost [Internet]. [cited 2020 Oct 18]. Available from: https://web.a.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail/detail?vid=0&sid=5f4ad088-312d-4cdb-ac2b-73180dd0ea7a%40sdc-v-sessmgr03&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=9604040429&db=rgm
20. www.archipicture.eu - Gigon Guyer - Andreasturm Zurich Oerlikon [Internet]. [cited 2020 Oct 19]. Available from: http://www.archipicture.eu/Architekten/Schweiz/Gigon Guyer/Gigon Guyer - Platform Office Building 1.html
21. www.archipicture.eu - Gigon Guyer - Museum Liner [Internet]. [cited 2020 Oct 24]. Available from: http://www.archipicture.eu/Architekten/Schweiz/Gigon Guyer/Gigon Guyer - Museum Liner Appenzell 1.html
