CASE STUDY: MUSEUM OF ART AND PHOTOGRAPHY (MAP)

location: bengaluru, india location map EXTERIOR: INTERIOR:

type: museum
From the outside, the building is reminiscent of a post- A public gallery space is located on the ground floor
Architects: Mathew and Ghosh Architects
industrial water tank, a metaphor for the capacity of The museum contains 620 square metres of gallery
Area: 4089 m²
art to quench the thirst for wisdom, to galvanise society space, with a large L-shaped exhibition space on the
Year: 2023
and culture, and to reflect and evolve. ground floor set to be free to the public.
The stainless steel façade is emblazoned with On the floors above, the steel frame is designed to
industrially pressed matte-finished panels that form a allow for large column-free spaces, including
The Museum of Art and Photography, Bangalore India, container-like skin over the structure, holding a mirror the130-seat auditorium placed on the first floor.
MAP plays on the tensions between the idea of to the tanks of Bangalore's bygone colonial era. The upper floors contain enclosed art galleries
collecting -collating, containing, and storing - which The building also widens as it moves upwards, an Above this are four galleries that will be used for
is the fodder for curatorship, and engagement with architectural intervention that optimises the structure, paid exhibitions, along with a member's lounge,
communities that embed the work as part of lived allowing the galleries above to feel more generous, and library and learning centre.
experience in the city of Bangalore, from the mundane appear almost column-free. Completing the building is a rooftop restaurant and
In addition, MAP is poised to be the most inclusive museum cafe that are designed as "a sanctuary" within the
to theatrical, and exotic to equal. The Museum design DESIGN: in India, with special integrations for people with city.
internally predicates art and its showcase over The building is wrapped in distinctive cladding disabilities. The main galleries are cocooned in opaque enclosures
spatial dramatics to present generic gallery spaces, The upper floors of the 4,000-square-metre museum that shield the artworks from exposure to
that insulate precious art and artifacts from are clad in stainless steel panels that are embossed ultraviolet light, while also ensuring temperature
ultraviolet light. with a cross pattern often found on water tanks. and humidity control.
According to the studio, this finish was designed to exterior views
At the same time, the circulation areas are
present the idea that art, like water, is precious. enveloped in glass, making nature a close neighbour
The hermetically sealed stainless steel imagery It was designed to evoke the appearance of a water and mitigating museum fatigue (a selection of panes
subverts the pristine iconic and exclusive by the tank feature a dichroic finish that projects a shimmering,
election of material and motif that is mnemonically "This is a metaphorical reference to the capacity of colour-shifting effect in relation to the changing
art to create a thrust on society and culture for light and the position of the observer).
relatable to the idea of containment - the stainless
reflection, change and evolution," said Ghosh, who The experience culminates in a terrace that offers
steel post-industrial water tank:
lead the studio alongside Nisha Mathew. unhindered vistas of the city, as well as the
"Here we reference art and it's increasing neighbouring 300-acre Cubbon Park, one of the city's
The Museum of Art & Photography in Bengaluru opened preciousness, like water, within this stainless steel historic hallmarks.
to the public on February 18, revealing an clad container," he continued.
extraordinary collection of South Asian art. Its "It was our intent that the easiest way to recall the
collection of over 60,000 works emphasises the MAP would be simply calling and recognising it as a interactive spaces:
contemporary, blurs the high-low deliberately, and 'Tanki' – a local term for a water tank." The museum lies at the intersection of art and
includes newly commissioned works from technology, with digital integrations underpinning the
exhibits on display. In the welcome atrium, for example,
underrepresented communities to correct existing
flickering digital lamps, lit via QR codes, pay homage to
gaps.
plans the Indian tradition of placing a lamp near the doorway.
Likewise, MAP's recently launched digital persona of the
late artist MF Husain – conceived in collaboration with
Accenture – lets visitors interact with the artist in real
time. Technologies such as photogrammetry for 3D-
scanning of artefacts, holograms, interactive
projections, interactive touch walls, sensor-based
digital art views, and AI-enabled art and pattern
searches, are among the tools available to bring each
exhibit to life and give each visitor a deeply
personalised experience.

Construction Ideology:
The idea of the 'veranda - plinth' off the street is a
significant marker of social discourse both at dwelling
as well as institutional scale in this geography: Its role
allows a dialogic space to negotiate visual visceral and
emotional engagements. The 'plinth of negotiations' may
thus weave threads of fragility and humility as one
traverses the landscape of discovery of the 'other'
versus art.