Museum of Ancient Nile
The project wants to be the conjugation of the relationship between artificial and nature. The Nile, the world's longest river, stretches across seven African states and has been the cradle, the hub and the key to the development of one of the world's most famous ancient civilizations, the ancient Egyptians; these, with their architecture, were the reason for study and research for architecture historians but also for all the students all over the world. In this sediment, which is rich in history, culture and tradition, has been incorporated the museum complex of the MoAN, which, with its design, aims to offer a complete and unique space for Egyptian art and culture, combining both the ancient and modern.
The museum complex develops through the solution of the slab, this is deformed through a clutch to create an undulating design that resumes the natural design of the desert dunes; the natural is related to the artificial of the parallelepiped component of the museum complex. This is spread over five different levels, including large spaces for temporary or fixed expositions as well as interactive spaces; Also in the museum’s block find place offices, on the second and third floor, as well as a bar and a restaurant. On the ground floor, there is a reception desk with the book shop and the wardrobe.
The archetypal form of the parallelepiped is articulated through the use of holes which allow to bring light to the ground floor and the mezzanine. The main staircase, that design and divide the entrance, is then divided into a complex climbing system consisting of a double ramp of stairs and two elevators serving the entire building. On the roof there is a large open space for temporary outside exhibitions, from here you also enjoy a pleasant panoramic view of the river and its surroundings.
In the other spaces deriving from the plate, there is a large conference room and a library with attached a restaurant.
The central hub of the project is the relationship between natural and artificial; natural shapes, derived from desert dunes, represented by the purity of architecture and hinged to the artifacts of the museum's gray parallelepiped, are reflected in the wide course of the Nile, to which they cling to the broad base.