MODERN VENICE
Venice is one of Europe’s mythical places breathing centuries of history — an impressive relic from eras of brilliant architectural and artistic mastery. In contrast to the crumbling facades of old Venice, the close-by suburb located on the mainland, Mestre, has grown into a new scene for Italy’s modern history. M9 Museum District is a new urban area, planned around a museum focusing on contemporary history — from the 20th century and onwards. The initiative is refreshing, and modern history needs a stronger identity in Italy.
The project emerged from the idea of building a historical center for education, cultural exchange, and inspiration. Mestre had for a long time remained a “backyard” suburb to Venice, an average middle-class suburban area with a blend and homogeneous urban landscape. Mestre might never attain the level needed to compete with the legendary Palaces despite the current upgraded site. However, a new and exciting architecture has leveraged Mestre to a significant tourist attraction with Museum M9’s international reputation. The M9 Museum district is an important urban revival project focusing on central Mestre. Despite significant contrasts to surrounding neighborhoods, the new architecture works out perfectly and witnesses a genuine sensibility and understanding for the area.
The project started as an international Architect competition. It was F
launched by Fondazione Venezia in 2010 and awarded was the German Architect office Sauerbruch Hutton, located in Berlin, http://www.sauerbruchhutton.de/ Their design proposal reflected a sensibility to- and understanding for Mestre’s urban area, suggesting a series of interlaced public spaces framing the two new museum buildings, including a monastery from the 16th century.
The museum district M9 consists of three parts. https://www.m9museum.it/en/ The new museum is represented by the main building with auditorium and exhibition halls. There is also a smaller building for administration. A monastery from the 15th century hosts the third party of the museum and complements the M9’s cultural activities with co-working spaces, retail stores, and a catering firm.
The monastery I located around a courtyard covered by a free-standing, semi-transparent membrane structure to prevent overheating in the summertime. The membrane roof reduces heat effects from the sun, and jointly with another green roof, it has improved the microclimate in central Mestre. The entire museum architecture is meticulously planned, and the design mirrors local inspirations — colors, materials, and building techniques. It is also an expression of modern culture, and the Architects have very well resolved the contrast between modern and historical architecture from a designer perspective. The Museum M9 is worth a timeout from ancient Venetian palaces.
