The new 150,000-square-foot museum will be located at the base of an ancient Citadel in the center of Erbil. It will include both permanent and temporary exhibitions, a lecture theater, a multimedia educational resources, a digital archive of Kurdish history, as well ascommunity centerand landscaped outdoor spaces.
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Four interlocking volumes, representing the Kurdish regions, intersect and break up the structure into two angular fragments representing the past and the future of Kurdistan. By juxtaposing opaque, heavy volumes with a lattice structure filled with greenery, the architects accentuated the dichotomy between the region’s tempestuous past and its rich cultural heritage.
An open-air courtyardlocated at the junction between the two contrasting parts is conceived as a tranquil, meditative space referencing ancient urban neighborhoods of Erbil. A water feature running through the museumis reminiscent of the rivers and valleys of Kurdistan.
+ Studio Libeskind
Rendering by Hayes Davidson
