3.2 Imperial War Museum, London

Appointment - 2010 Completion - 2014 Area - 22,500m² Capacity - 1,000,000 visitors per annum Client - The Imperial War Museum Structural Engineer - Burro Happold Quantity Surveyor - Turner and Townsend Lighting Engineer - George Sexton Associates

The heart of the building is a generous new atrium, which provides a dramatic space in which to view the largest objects from the Museum’s collection. The relationship between these exhibits and the surrounding galleries has been completely redefined – the Harrier jet, Spitfire, V2 rocket and other iconic objects are suspended to correspond with the gallery displays on each of the floors for the first time.

-Viewed from the upper levels, the aircraft are framed by a series of large-scale concrete fins.

-These fins line the atrium and widen as they rise to provide structural support for the aircraft, extended gallery floors and barrel-vaulted roof.

-Terraces between the fins open up visual connections vertically and across the central space, and a new gallery floor suspended beneath the dome of the roof protects the exhibits from direct sunlight.

The masterplan for the Imperial War Museum continues the practice’s work in adapting and revitalizing London’s historically important buildings. The project involved the sensitive refurbishment of the existing museum, improving access and circulation, opening the interiors to daylight and views and establishing direct links with the surrounding park. The strategic masterplan was designed to meet the museum’s long-term needs. By bringing clarity to the building’s plan and arranging the exhibition chronologically by floor, the design optimizes the exhibition spaces and visitor experience. The first phase of the refurbishment was timed to coincide with the centenary of the beginning of the First World War. Imperial War Museums is a British national museum organization with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. Founded as the Imperial War Museum in 1917, the museum was intended to record the civil and military war effort and sacrifice of Britain and its Empire during the First World War.

The galleries have been completely reconfigured, with a new chronological arrangement designed to be more intuitive. The new First World War Galleries, with interiors by Casson Mann, are located at

ground level, and the top floor of the building will eventually be dedicated to current conflicts. Vertical circulation has also been redesigned to make the connections between floors more visible – a new cantilevered stair forms the backdrop to the atrium. Rather than encroaching on the exhibition space, the café and shop have now been relocated to the new, lower entrance level at ground floor. The previously sealed ground floor windows along the western façade have been opened up to allow views into the museum, as well as views of the park from the atrium. The café can now be used outside of the Museum’s opening hours, and its seating extends into the park to create an open-air dining area. Rather than encroaching on the exhibition space, the café and shop have now been relocated to the new, lower entrance level at ground floor. The previously sealed ground floor windows along the western façade have been opened up to allow views into the museum, as well as views of the park from the atrium. The café can now be used outside of the Museum’s opening hours, and its seating extends into the park to create an open-air dining area.

In August 2019, the Museum announced plans to spend over £30m on a new set of galleries over two floors at its London site covering the Holocaust and its importance in World War II. The galleries are set to open in 2021 and will replace the existing permanent exhibition.

Structure

The majority of the steelwork was finished with intumescent paint, with areas that are visible in the final condition being matched to the finish of the existing steelwork. The feature stair structure up to the link bridge was finished with a hot zinc spray sealed with a renaissance wax to the underside of the trusses and treads. The top of the treads was covered with a precast concrete nosing sat on the steel plates and the side trusses were finished with thin steel sheet wrapped tightly around the supporting steel members.

Construction

The construction of this building was an alter from the old existing hospital, where they decapitated the floors and ceilings to give a room height for the artifacts to be hung in an angular view showcasing the scale and the massive structure of the exhibits. The floor of the atrium has been lowered to park level, in anticipation of a future phase of development, in which the approach to the building will be scooped out to create a single, accessible entrance for all below the existing portico stair. The current entrance staircase is temporary and will be removed when the new approach sequence is complete. The planned oval forecourt will create a public plaza, visually balancing the weight of the historic building and emphasizing the Imperial War Museum as a contemporary institution, while retaining the integrity of the existing structure.

INFERENCES

-Suspended planes and other objects are positioned to line up with viewpoints from the existing galleries on the first, second and third floors, offering visitors a chance to view the exhibits up close but lack safety measures if the tie breaks down.

-The base of the atrium is also at ground level, anticipating a future stage of development that will include adding a new accessible entrance into the museum from the surrounding gardens.

-A temporary entrance staircase has been installed in the meantime, while more new staircases have been added inside the building to make the connections between floors more visible.

-The existing cafe and shop have been relocated to free up more space for exhibits. Now on the ground floor, the cafe can be opened outside of museum hours and offers diners outdoor seating in the park. -There are no hangers for aircrafts and huge entrance space for the exhibits to be bought in or repairs, these have to be dismantled and reassembled every time.