Completed the extension of the Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N
15/10/2019.
[Penthaz] Switzerland
metalocus, INÉS LALUETA
metalocus, INÉS LALUETA
EM2N has completed the project and extension for the National Research and Archiving Centre Cinémathèque suisse in Penthaz, Switzerland, after winning a contest and a long management process at different stages.
Cinémathèque suisse is recognized by the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF) as one of the ten most important film libraries in the world for the scope, diversity, and quality of its collections. Alongside 85,000 feature films and documentaries, the collection of Cinémathèque suisse includes thousands of hours of filmed documents of all kinds; the archives of the Swiss Ciné-Journal; as well as millions of posters, photographs, screenplays, documentary files, books and periodicals, antique equipment, sets, and film-related objects. It is the only national institution that collects and preserves the majority of film and audiovisual production in Switzerland.
Cinémathèque suisse is recognized by the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF) as one of the ten most important film libraries in the world for the scope, diversity, and quality of its collections. Alongside 85,000 feature films and documentaries, the collection of Cinémathèque suisse includes thousands of hours of filmed documents of all kinds; the archives of the Swiss Ciné-Journal; as well as millions of posters, photographs, screenplays, documentary files, books and periodicals, antique equipment, sets, and film-related objects. It is the only national institution that collects and preserves the majority of film and audiovisual production in Switzerland.
Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Interior view. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Interior view. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Interior view. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Interior view. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Interior view. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Interior view. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Interior view. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Interior view. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Interior view. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Interior view. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Interior view. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Damian Poffet
Interior view. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N. Photograph by Roger Frei Architekturfotografie
Site photograph. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N.
Basement floor. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N.
Ground floor plan. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N.
First floor plan. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N.
Cross and longitudinal sections. Cinémathèque suisse by EM2N.
The EM2N design includes many references to film and archives: the oxidized steel façade evokes the challenges of conservation; the large window in the museum space hints at a film screen; and the meeting rooms suspended above the lobby and exhibition space suggest the cinematic effects of framing and editing
The Cinémathèque is a complex project that paradoxically, has its charm in its simple and utilitarian appearance. According to project description, the building is "the home of the national collective film memory presented itself as an unpretentious accumulation of sheds that was focussed more on contents than on packaging."
The Cinémathèque is a complex project that paradoxically, has its charm in its simple and utilitarian appearance. According to project description, the building is "the home of the national collective film memory presented itself as an unpretentious accumulation of sheds that was focussed more on contents than on packaging."
Project description by EM2N
Paradoxically, the charm of the existing Cinémathèque lay in its simple and utilitarian ap- pearance. The home of the national collective film memory presented itself as an unpreten- tious accumulation of sheds that was focussed more on contents than on packaging. The extension project accepts this starting point and makes it its own.
The layout of the existing buildings which are arranged linearly alongside each other is translated by new additions and remodelling into a composite, ambivalent form of parallel buildings of different lengths. Only the end situation is differentiated by making a number of angled cuts; in this way the building acquires a face.
The principle of placing buildings alongside each other is evident in the interior, too. The three main circulation routes, which are placed above one another, pass through the parallel cross-walls at right angles, allowing the sequential arrangement of the ‘individual’ buildings to be experienced. The suspended conference rooms in the two-storey entrance and exhibition hall are in turn connected with each other by windows. When looking across and through the building this produces a perspective depth while also suggesting associations to filmic processes such as montage and cutting.
While the public areas and all work places are concentrated in Penthaz I, the archive itself on the far side of the road is conceived as a purely underground storage space. In this way the functional and atmospheric side effects are restricted to an absolute minimum. Penthaz II is a kind of super-functional bunker that ensures the best possible protection for the culturally valuable artefacts. In a simple manner a kind of urban disposition is achieved that, on the one hand, reacts to the expansiveness of the nearby agricultural landscape and on the other gives Cinémathèque suisse as an institution an emphatically clear address.
The new envelope of rusted steel, an industrial material that emanates a sensual quality, encases the entire complex and binds the new and the existing parts together. The gradual weathering of this natural material is a reference to the archive’s function in preserving film and gives the complex a differentiated identity of its own. The modulated, condensed roofscape composed of gently sloping, planted roofs takes up the theme of industrial pro- duction facilities or film studios.
More information
Architects
EM2N. Partners.- Mathias Müller, Daniel Niggli. Associates.- Marc Holle, Christof Zollinger. Project leaders.- Bettina Baumberger, Jean-Baptiste Joye, Roger Küng.
Project Team
Project team (competition).- Ruben Daluz, Phillippe Jorisch, Yoshihiro Nagamine, Noémi Necker, Miriam Rollwa. Project team (construction).- Julia Berger, Stefan Berle, Laurent Chassot, Nadine Coetzee, Nicolas de Courten, Pascal Deschenaux, Melih Dilsiz, Yann Dubied, Ramona Elmiger, Amélie Fibicher, Marita Gelze de Montiel, Gregor Goldinger, Sebastian Knorr, Robert Kuijper, Andreas Lahti, Andrea Landell, Minka Ludwig, Raúl Mera, Stéphanie Morel, Klaudija Oroshi, Fabien Oulevay, Jeremias Pellaton, Bernard Radi, Adriano Reis, Tanja Schmid, Daniela Sigg, Eva-Noemi Thiele, Agata Tyszecka, Danessa Urquiola, Jonas von Wartburg, Sven Ziegler, Michael Zürcher.
Collaborators
Construction management / construction realisation.- TEKHNE SA, Lausanne / Aplanir sarl, Echallens.
Construction consultancy.- Brandenberg + Ruosch AG, Bern.
Civil engineer.- Schnetzer Puskas Ingenieure AG, Zürich / Boss & Associés Ingénieurs Conseils SA, Ecublens.
Facade planning.- Basler & Hofmann AG, Zurich.
Planning and coordination heating / ventilation / air-conditioning / cooling technology and sanitary.- Gruenberg + Partner AG, Zurich.
Electrical engineer.- IBG B. Graf AG Engineering / Josef Piller SA, Fribourg / Betelec SA, Villars-Sainte-Croix.
Building physics.- Kopitsis Bauphysik AG, Wohlen.
Acoustics.- Applied Acoustics GmbH, Gelterkinden.
Fire protection.- CR Conseils, Oron-la-Ville.
Security.- Holliger Consult, Epsach.
Geologist / Geotechnical engineer.- De Cérenville Géotechnique, Ecublens.
Traffic planning.- IBV Hüsler AG, Zurich.
Landscape architecture.- Studio Vulkan, Zurich.
Pollutant security.- HPB Consulting, Zurich.
Specialists.- La Boite Visual Art, Locarno / L’Immagine Ritrovata, Bologna.
Client
Federal Office for Buildings and Logistics FBL.
Type of commission
Competition, 1st prize.
Dates
Competition.- 2007. Planning.- 2008–2017. Construction.- 2010–2013 (1st phase), 2013–2015 (2nd phase), 2017–2019 (3rd phase).
Area
Gross floor area.- 13,110 m²
Adress
Chemin de la Vaux 1, CH-1303 Penthaz, Switzerland.
Programme
Archive, Offices, Conference rooms, Workshops, Auditorium, Foyer, Cinema, Library.
Architects EM2N
EM2N. With offices in both Zurich and Berlin, EM2N with Mathias Müller (*1966) and Daniel Niggli (*1970) has 80 collaborators working on construction and competition projects in Switzerland and abroad. In addition to a number of awards including ‘bestarchitects’, ‘Umsicht-Regards-Sguardi’, the ‘Auszeichnung Guter Bauten’ from the City of Zurich, the Canton of Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landschaft, they received the ‘Swiss Art Award’ in Architecture. Mathias Müller and Daniel Niggli were visiting professors at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, as well as in Zurich. Daniel Niggli was a member of the construction commitees in Berlin (2008–12) and Zurich (2010–14).
Their important recent construction projects include the Heuried Sports Centre in Zurich (2017), the Housing Riedpark in Zug (2016), the Lucerne School of Art and Design in Emmenbrücke (2016), the Swiss Film Archive in Penthaz (2015), the Toni-Areal in Zurich (2014), the Keystone Office Building in Prag (2012) and ‘Im Viadukt’– Refurbishment of the viaduct arches in Zurich (2010). Planning has started on, among other projects, the Quartier Heidestrasse, Commercial area in Berlin (since 2016), the Housing Briesetrasse Neukölln in Berlin (since 2015), the New Museum of Natural History Basel and State Archives Basel-City (since 2015) and the Zellweger Parc, Plot D in Uster (since 2014).
EM2N is managed by Mathias Müller and Daniel Niggli together with their associates Bernd Druffel (*1972), Fabian Hörmann (*1978), Verena Lindenmayer (*1975), Björn Rimner (*1978), Gerry Schwyter (*1975) and Christof Zollinger (*1973).
Mathias Müller (1966) graduated on Architecture (1996) by Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (ETHZ). He develops his educative and professional careen in Switzerland , where, since 1997, works as partner of EM2N office.
1996.- Thesis Prof. A. Meyer / Marcel Meili, ETH Zurich.
1997.- Created EM2N Architekten ETH / SIA.
2004.- Federal Art Awart – Architecture.
2005.- Visiting Professor ETH Lausanne.
2006.- Membership Federation of Swiss Architects.
2009.- 2011 Visiting Professor ETH Zurich.
Daniel Niggli (1970) graduated on Architecture (1996) by Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (ETHZ). He develops his educative and professional careen in Switzerland , where, since 1997, works as partner of EM2N office.
1996.- Thesis Prof. A. Meyer / Marcel Meili, ETH Zurich.
1997.- Created EM2N Architekten ETH / SIA.
2004.- Federal Art Award – Architecture.
2005.- Visiting Professor ETH Lausanne.
2006.- Membership Federation of Swiss Architects.
2008 - 2012.- Member Baukollegium Berlin.
2009 - 2011.- Visiting Professor ETH Zürich.
2010 - 2014.- Member Baukollegium Zürich.
Their important recent construction projects include the Heuried Sports Centre in Zurich (2017), the Housing Riedpark in Zug (2016), the Lucerne School of Art and Design in Emmenbrücke (2016), the Swiss Film Archive in Penthaz (2015), the Toni-Areal in Zurich (2014), the Keystone Office Building in Prag (2012) and ‘Im Viadukt’– Refurbishment of the viaduct arches in Zurich (2010). Planning has started on, among other projects, the Quartier Heidestrasse, Commercial area in Berlin (since 2016), the Housing Briesetrasse Neukölln in Berlin (since 2015), the New Museum of Natural History Basel and State Archives Basel-City (since 2015) and the Zellweger Parc, Plot D in Uster (since 2014).
EM2N is managed by Mathias Müller and Daniel Niggli together with their associates Bernd Druffel (*1972), Fabian Hörmann (*1978), Verena Lindenmayer (*1975), Björn Rimner (*1978), Gerry Schwyter (*1975) and Christof Zollinger (*1973).
Mathias Müller (1966) graduated on Architecture (1996) by Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (ETHZ). He develops his educative and professional careen in Switzerland , where, since 1997, works as partner of EM2N office.
1996.- Thesis Prof. A. Meyer / Marcel Meili, ETH Zurich.
1997.- Created EM2N Architekten ETH / SIA.
2004.- Federal Art Awart – Architecture.
2005.- Visiting Professor ETH Lausanne.
2006.- Membership Federation of Swiss Architects.
2009.- 2011 Visiting Professor ETH Zurich.
Daniel Niggli (1970) graduated on Architecture (1996) by Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (ETHZ). He develops his educative and professional careen in Switzerland , where, since 1997, works as partner of EM2N office.
1996.- Thesis Prof. A. Meyer / Marcel Meili, ETH Zurich.
1997.- Created EM2N Architekten ETH / SIA.
2004.- Federal Art Award – Architecture.
2005.- Visiting Professor ETH Lausanne.
2006.- Membership Federation of Swiss Architects.
2008 - 2012.- Member Baukollegium Berlin.
2009 - 2011.- Visiting Professor ETH Zürich.
2010 - 2014.- Member Baukollegium Zürich.
