(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Last month, the Qatar Museums (QM) launched an international design competition to find an ingenious architect who can reimagine a flour mill by the Doha waterfront as a classy modern and contemporary art museum. At circa one million square foot, the Art Mill will be one of the largest and most forward-looking art galleries in the world.
In this three-stage competition, the first stage € an open call for interest to establish a long-list of 20 architects € was recently closed, and the staggering array of entries received is bound to make choosing the semi-finalists a tough choice. The selection process is open to practicing architects with at least seven years' experience post final professional qualification.
This three-stage competition process has been devised to test competitors, whilst optimising time and resources, and avoiding unnecessary waste in developing schemes. The second stage will see the semi-finalists briefed and asked to envision strategies for the site and its links to the city. The third stage will centre on five finalists "who will be given a further briefing and asked to develop more detailed concept designs for the conversion and extension of the Flour Mills' structures."
Set to complete Doha's spectacular sequence of museums devoted to art, such as I M Pei's Museum of Islamic Art (MIA), and Jean Nouvel's upcoming National Museum of Qatar, the Art Mill demands "an accomplished design, with architectural integrity and presence, for the spectacular and historic waterfront site reserved for the project."
"As much a bridge between cultures as a treasure house, the new museum aims to inspire new insights, encourage receptivity, widen artistic sensibilities, and promote understanding. The Art Mill will celebrate imagination and creativity," says QM, about the Art Mill project.
The Art Mill International Design Competition is structured to allow a highly focused, three-stage search, and can be seen as a new model for international design competitions. QM is specifically seeking out new € as well as established € talent "looking for architects with evident capability who are on the threshold of distinction."
QM further adds, "The proposed site for the Art Mill was originally a key node within the Arabian Gulf port, essential for the import of grain. It is presently occupied by Qatar Flour Mills, which sits to the east of MIA. The site has a distinctive open aspect with three sides adjoining Doha Bay, and the other linking the city. The mill operation will now move to purpose-built new facilities."
The brief handed out to the contesting architects is rather interesting. It's clear that the museum will predominantly feature gallery and exhibition space, but there's a sharp focus on including extensive education, conference and event space, as well as state-of-the-art conservation and storage to match the diversity of the collection. Also, there will be facilities to support the community and provide amenities for visiting families.
As QM rightly puts it, "With its reinvention as a place generating cultural rather than physical sustenance, the site is well placed for transport and social amenities, supplying the missing jigsaw-piece to complete the public realm around a key civic quarter."
The industrial process of milling has left a fascinating legacy in the layout and spaces of the existing buildings on the site, notably voluminous spaces and a rhythmic, patterned promenade of vertical silos, points out QM. "Some of the Flour Mills buildings possess an authentic monumentality in terms of positioning, scale and noble forms. Re-using and adapting these structures will be integral to the project," it says.
Organised by Malcolm Reading Consultants, the competition certainly guarantees to be a life-changing opportunity for architects. A contribution to expenses of £5,000 will be paid to the semi-finalists. An honorarium of £30,000 will be paid to the finalists.
The long-list will be announced this summer, while the shortlist will be chosen in the autumn. The winning practice will be picked in spring 2016. Construction of the project is expected to begin in 2017. Brace yourselves art lovers € Art Mill is coming.
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