The jury of the competition for the new Carmen Thyssen Museum in Sant Feliu de Guixols (Girona) has awarded First Prize to the proposal of Nieto Sobejano Arquitectos (Madrid-Berlin). The project is located in the city's monastery, a heritage architectural complex that spans from the 13th to the 18th century and the current era. In relation to the existing museums of the Carmen Thyssen collection in Madrid, Malaga and Andorra, the new project will house the collection of Catalan paintings of the 19th and 20th centuries, in a program of uses conceived as an artistic and cultural center in close relationship with the surrounding gardens.
The project of Nieto Sobejano, arises from the desire to connect architecture with the landscape through an elevated garden, under which the new heart of the museum is developed: a multipurpose space from which you can access the historic building, as well as the outdoor gardens. The new extension evokes the history and architectural typology of the monastery cloister that never came to be realized. The resulting flexible space will allow various modes of exposure: painting, sculpture, performances and artistic installations. The historic building will be restored and rehabilitated with the utmost respect for its original architecture. The new Carmen Thyssen Museum will coexist with the long and heterogeneous history of the monastery of Sant Feliu de Guixols, aware of the role of contemporary architecture in its relationship with the city, landscape and history.
