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UPDATE: There is an IT problem accessing the public procurement documents, preventing access to the system for the design tender. The Contracting Authority has decided to correct this by withdrawing the design tender notice and re-launching the procedure as soon as possible, which is expected to be published on the 16th of September 2024.
An international competition will be held to select the museum’s exhibition building designer. The call has been published in the Official Journal of the European Union.
The Hungarian Natural History Museum, a prestigious base for national and international natural science research, will continue its mission to stimulate and sustain the need to learn about and understand nature’s diversity and engage its visitors in conserving the natural environment. Its education programme provides opportunities for education, environmental education, and science education for all.
The Debrecen Assembly’s April meeting discussed the possible relocation of the museum to Debrecen. Mayor of Debrecen László Papp said then that the local government had done the preparatory work necessary to launch an international design competition. After negotiations with the ministry, it was agreed that the local government would carry it out.
According to a statement by Debrecen Infrastructure Development Ltd, the design of the Hungarian Natural History Museum’s new exhibition building will be selected due to a design competition involving prestigious national and international firms. The museum currently operates from three sites in Budapest. They said that most professional background work is carried out in two areas with little infrastructure for storing artefacts, which are far below international museum standards.
The new museum building is envisaged to be an innovative and iconic architectural solution capable of presenting natural science content in a forward-looking way. It will be located in the Oláh Gábor Street stadium and will fit perfectly into the unique fabric of the Great Forest, which is closely linked to the natural environment.
The project will create one of Central Europe’s most important cultural, scientific and community institutions and one of Europe’s most modern and significant natural history exhibition spaces. The building will be not only a modern, innovative, environmentally conscious and world-class exhibition space but also a place that will meet the needs of today’s and tomorrow’s museum visitor trends and offer an all-day experience.
To ensure the high quality of the project, Debrecen Infrastructure Development Ltd. and the City of Debrecen is launching a two-round international design competition for the design of the new exhibition building, for which, in addition to the best foreign designers, applications from domestic design offices are also invited.
After the first pre-qualification phase, 14 design offices from abroad and Hungary will be invited to participate.
In the second phase of the competition, firms will have until 7 January 2025 to submit their entries, which will be selected by a jury of renowned national and international experts. The total prize money for the competition is EUR 330,000.
According to the press release, the unanimously positive feedback from the firms invited to participate indicates that the competition will result in a significant museum building for Debrecen, Hungary, and the whole Central and Eastern European region.
Source: Debrecen Infrastructure Development Ltd – Dehir.hu | Photo credit: Hans Rohmann from Pixabay
