We present the project by Marcin Kwietowicz and Mateusz Załuski, which was awarded second prize in the 2019 realization competition organized by the Lublin Museum in Lublin and the SARP Main Board for the Museum of the Eastern Lands of the Former Republic of Poland, which included the modernization and adaptation to museum needs of the Lubomirski Palace premises.
The competition concept was to include an architectural and scenographic design of the interiors and a proposal for the arrangement of both permanent, temporary and changing exhibitions. The authors' task was to preserve the existing historical structure of the palace rooms and the new design of the basement. By the decision of the Competition Jury, the first prize went to the studio WXCA and Ralph Appelbaum Associates, while the second prize went to the project by Marcin Kwietowicz and Mateusz Załuski.
The architects decided on a strong separation of the permanent and temporary exhibition parts
© Marcin Kwietowicz, Mateusz Załuska
The architects decided to strongly polarize parts of the museum - the old above-ground one retained the character of the palace and houses the permanent exhibition, while the part intended for temporary exhibitions was placed in the basement, which was replaced by a concrete and steel space lit from above.
Covering such a space in the basement, under the old palace, seemed to us a very strong and surprising spatial impression, disturbing the reflexive idea of what the palace is, the authors add.
Wanting to avoid strong interference with the existing fabric, the architects based most of their decision on the idea of cleaning up the palace and carefully adding elements to the existing structure. The goal was to achieve a proposal that would distribute the various functions - a permanent exhibition, a temporary exhibition hall with an audiovisual room, a café and library, technical and support rooms, and museum staff offices - in a clear and communicatively easy way while linking them together.
As the architects say about the project:
Many facts such as, among others, the history of Lublin, the significant name of the square where the Lubomirski Palace is located, the monument commemorating the Lublin Union and, above all, the history of the palace itself mean that the idea of including the building in the Lublin Museum complex and dedicating an exhibition to the subject of the Eastern Lands of the former Republic needs no additional arguments. The building is a historical and architectural asset, becoming the main exhibit. That's why we treated the complex competition task - the adaptation of existing spaces for the cultural-educational needs of the museum, the arrangement of new office spaces for the institution's employees and the increase of exhibition space at the basement level of the palace - as an opportunity not to compete, but to highlight the spatial-visual qualities of the monument.
museum entrance hall
© Marcin Kwietowicz, Mateusz Załuska
entrance area
Due to its central location, as well as its spatial and functional layout, the entrance hall has become a landmark of the Museum. The main elements of this space are its openings, its strong symmetry and its punctuated disturbances. Each tells the story of a different aspect of the Museum - the strongest opening with a parade staircase is the way to the piano nobile (permanent exhibition), two symmetrical arches lead to the representative rooms on the first floor, an opening showing a section of the museum store leads to the elevator hall. Meanwhile, two new opposite openings in the side walls refer to the information desk and the staircase leading to level -1.
On the first floor there is a permanent exhibition
© Marcin Kwietowicz, Mateusz Załuska
exhibition scenario
The temporal and substantive scope included in the scenario of the Museum of the Eastern Lands of the Old Republic is very extensive. It covers hundreds of years and dozens of issues from many fields of science, and the related collection will count a large number of exhibits presented at the exhibition.
When embarking on the development of the competition work, we decided that the key to the exhibition must be to make the narrative accessible and comprehensible to the viewer, so that through an hour-and-a-half-long journey through the eastern lands of the former Commonwealth by means of the permanent exhibition, he or she would be able to learn both the Museum's message and detailed information in the fields and topics of interest," explain Marcin Kwietowicz and Mateusz Załuska.
To achieve this, the architects proposed arranging the content in such a way that the period from the Middle Ages up to and including the 19th century would be located on the second floor of the Lubomirski Palace, while the content related to the 20th century would be located on the first floor, where it would be possible to archive film footage or reminiscences in audio-video format. The content placed in the piano nobile consists of a sequence of chronological issues placed in rooms in the middle part of the floor and two thematic annexes in the outer rooms. The halls on the first floor have a chronological arrangement. This way of arranging the subject material makes it possible to visit the museum in parts, since both the first floor and first floor sections form thematic wholes. Also, the separation of annexes makes it possible to visit them independently of the entire exhibition. This allows, on the one hand, visitors interested in specific issues to efficiently see the part of the exhibition that interests them the most, and on the other hand facilitates the conduct of several museum lessons at the exhibition at the same time.
permanent exhibition
The design of the scenography of the permanent exhibition at the Museum of the Eastern Lands of the Former Republic follows the structure of the building where the exhibition will be located, making the historic palace and its history almost an equal protagonist. The exhibition is divided into two parts, differing from each other both in terms of the scenographic treatments used and the nature of the museumalia in them.
The first part of the exhibition is a story about the rise, golden age and decline and fall of the First Republic of Poland
© Marcin Kwietowicz, Mateusz Załuska
piano nobile and first floor
Located on the representative second floor, the first part of the exhibition is a story about the rise, golden age and decline and fall of the First Republic. A representative palace staircase and an elevator located in the central part of the building lead to it from the entrance hall. The exhibition fills almost the entirety of the piano nobile, allowing visitors to experience and understand the scale and grandeur of the palace interiors and amphilades. In this part, the architects guided the narrative by traditional means, focusing on the museum objects and supplementing them with multimedia projections. The second part of the exhibition is more multimedia in nature and is located on the first floor. The history shown includes the road to independence and the renewed flourishing of the borderlands in the interwar period, interrupted by World War II. The narrative is carried all the way to the present day - the epilogue of the exhibition not only sums it up, but also reopens it. Through the workshop and educational part, the exhibition is seamlessly connected with the daily life of the museum.
educational rooms and library
The museum has two educational rooms - one smaller one adjacent to the permanent exhibition, and the other next to the library in the western treasury annex. The architects proposed opening blind windows in the façade, both on the south (center window) and west sides (three openings). This gives the library an open, sunny space overlooking the green grove between the Lubomirski Palace under development and the Gubernial Palace.
the part intended for temporary exhibitions is located in the basement of the museum
© Marcin Kwietowicz, Mateusz Załuska
cafe and offices
Located in the eastern outbuilding, the café, along with catering facilities and separate sanitary facilities, is an integral part of the Palace and can function independently outside of the Museum's opening hours. Located at the passage connecting Litewski Square and Radziwillowska Street, it is not only a passageway, but also opens the interiors to the viewing axes: the Czartoryski Palace to the east and the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in the southern corner of Litewski Square. The main entrance to the building leads through the eastern gate passage. The architectural concept is to open the historic wooden doors during the café's working hours, so that the passage is not only an entrance and a link between the café and the Museum, but can also become a winter garden. The interior of the café consists of two rooms, it is possible to exclude one room for organized readings or meetings.
The architects took into account the adaptation of the entire attic area of the Museum for office use. Following the conservator's recommendation not to interfere with the roof surface on the Litewski Square side, the skylight windows on the Radziwill Street side were enlarged, and the interiors were arranged in groups of similar subject matter in open-space. Where it is necessary to cordon off a separate room (conservation studios, etc.), glass partitions have been used so as to maximize daylight-free spaces throughout the floor. Both employees and visitors can access the office floor without entering the main area of the museum, using two staircases. The authors also included a freight elevator.
Level -1 has been adapted for temporary exhibitions
© Marcin Kwietowicz, Mateusz Załuska
temporary exhibitions underground
Level -1 has been adapted for temporary expositions. The architects decided to shore up the basement by injecting concrete into the ground using the jet grouting method. The entire process requires replacing the existing first floor floors, which will remove uneven levels and thus facilitate communication for people with disabilities. Due to the large construction effort, the authors decided that the new space should reflect the character of the submerged hall, as well as completely deviate in style from the palace atmosphere. Therefore, the main space with a hall, temporary exhibitions and an audiovisual room in has the character of a concrete bowl, divided into three parts and covered by a steel structure, carrying the weight of the Palace. However, for special events, it is possible to divide the space as desired, including opening it up completely. Thus, the Museum gains an open, representative space of about 690 square meters.
The design of the underground part allows for any arrangement of the space
© Marcin Kwietowicz, Mateusz Załuska
By extending the facade line of the central part of the building, the outline of the hall extends slightly beyond the boundaries of the existing building. This allows daylight to stream in between the steel ceiling beams, sliding across the smooth surfaces of the polished walls. An interesting fixed element is the steel staircase hanging from the ceiling, a delicate sculptural addition to the space. Due to the special nature of the room, as well as their technical aspects (difficult to drill concrete), the architects decided to hide all technical elements such as general lighting, spot lighting, hooks for mounting hanging panels, rails for installing partitions and electrical wires. The remaining rooms of this level are of a service nature, and their plan duplicates the existing foundations. The surfaces of the concrete walls will remain rough, carrying information about the process of their creation.
