Grisons Museum of Fine Arts Extension

Picture of Words & Photography: Karin Bürki

Words & Photography: Karin Bürki

Buendner Kunstmuseum Chur, Grisons Museum of Fine Arts Extension, Barozzi Veiga, Swiss neo brutalism, © Karin Bürki. Explore more on Heartbrut.com
Gridfinity

The 4,000 m2 purist concrete cube is located in the centre of Chur, opposite Villa Planta, the magnificently ornate 18th-century home of the original art museum. The extension, by Barcelona-based Barozzi Veiga, is a contemporary take on the Palladian style of its predecessor. But instead of pomp, radical reduction and repetition reign supreme: the exterior’s sleek, inset relief panels are made up of 4,600 square blocks of cast concrete. It’s Palladian for purists. This minimalist cube is a fine example of how concrete can be made into something that is both strikingly bold and delicate.

The extension won the RIBA Award for International Excellence 2018.

© Karin Bürki/HEARTBRUT

© Karin Bürki/Heartbrut

Palais des Congrès, Max Schlup, Swiss brutalism icon, © Karin Bürki/HEARTBRUT. Explore more on Heartbrut.com
Saurer Tower, Saurerhochhaus, Georges-Pierre Dubois, Arbon, 1958-1960, Swiss Brutalism, © Karin Bürki/Heartbrut. Explore more on Heartbrut.com
Roccolo, Swiss neo brutalism, Miller & Maranta, © Karin Bürki. Explore more on Heartbrut.com
Franziskushaus, abandoned former retreat house, conference centre and student campus, Otto Glaus, 1969, Swiss brutalism. Explore more on Heartbrut.com