The LEGO Group selected BIG and Ralph Appelbaum Associates to design their interactive museum back in February of 2013 because of their understanding of LEGO and architecture. In fact it’s not the first time BIG has built with LEGOs, and their pixelated designs are well-suited for an official LEGO museum in the birthplace of the universal toy. The concept the team just unveiled is a series of LEGO-block buildings stacked to create a mountain of LEGOs that visitors can walk around, under, in and over, just as you would if you were playing. To be located in the center of Billund, the parts of the museum and its surrounding plaza will be open to the public for free.
The stacked block building will have approximately 7,600 sq m of exhibition areas, a café, a unique LEGO store and a large public square. Daylighting will stream in from the sides and through skylights in the roof, while rooftop gardens will expand public space and provide outdoor play areas. With an expected opening in 2016, the museum expects to see around 250,000 visitors annually.
“Architect firm BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group) has designed a building that encapsulates what LEGO play and LEGO values are all about”, says Hans Peter Folmann, Marketing responsible for the LEGO House. “The creative use of the LEGO brick shape is a true visualization of the systematic creativity that is at the core of LEGO play, so we believe that this is the right look for the LEGO House. And it simply looks amazing.”
Via ArchDaily
Images ©BIG and The LEGO Group
