Five shortlisted for major redevelopment of British Museum’s galleries

Five groups have been shortlisted for a major upgrade of the British Museum that will see more than a third of the museum’s gallery space redeveloped.

British Museum during previous refurbishment works in August 2020 (c) ianVisits

Over 60 groups applied to lead the architectural project, which has been narrowed to a shortlist of five groups. Their designs will go on public display in the Museum’s Round Reading Room in December, and the winning design will be announced early next year.

The western side of the Museum, where the redevelopment will take place, currently houses collections from Ancient Egypt, Greece (including the Parthenon Sculptures), Rome, Ancient Assyria, and the Middle East. Including the galleries, the redevelopment will encompass about a third of the British Museum’s space and significant back-of-house areas in one of the most ambitious projects of its kind.

As many visitors will confirm, once you look around the galleries, you’ll see they’re rather dated in appearance. They also lack any decent air cooling systems, which makes them uncomfortably hot in summer, and navigating your way around can be a bit of a mess.

The winning team will work with staff across the British Museum to develop designs for the Western Range that respond to the Museum’s historic buildings, decarbonisation plans, and the ongoing process of reimagining the display and care of collections.

The shortlisted teams are:

  • Team 1: 6a Architects with: Advanced Integrated Solutions, Arup, David Bonnett Associates, Gitta Gschwendtner, Kellenberger-White, London School of Architecture, Purcell, Studio ZNA
  • Team 2: David Chipperfield Architects with: AEA Consulting, Adamson Associates, Alan Baxter Associates, Arup, Atelier Brückner, Atelier Ten, Lobe Lloyd, Julian Harrap Architects, Plan A, Reusefully, Neal Shasore
  • Team 3: Eric Parry Architects and Jamie Fobert Architects with: Buro Happold, David Bonnett Associates, Max Fordham, Mima, Price & Myers, Purcell, Space Syntax, Studio ZNA
  • Team 4: Lina Ghotmeh — Architecture with: Ali Cherri, Arup, Holmes Studio, Plan A, Purcell
  • Team 5: OMA with: Arup, Benoy, Cookies, dUCKS Sceno, EQ2 Lighting, Purcell, Salvatore Settis, Studio ZNA

The Museum has confirmed that it will stay open to the public throughout the works on the Master Plan, although galleries will need to close or move around at times to accommodate the builders.

It’s going to be several years before any work starts, though, as the plans will need to undergo lengthy consultations while the museum raises the money to pay for them.