"When the vestiges have disappeared, the museum will remain”
This sentence, taken from the programme, is very strong. It clearly states the major stakes of this project, which are remembrance, knowledge and transmission of this common history as well as our duty to remember beyond the certain disappearance of the remains of the artificial harbour in the near future.
In this very open landscape, everything is a horizon
The relationship of the project to the territory is fundamental and seems almost self-evident: positioned as it is, this museum is in fact an observatory. The transformation operation marks a new stage in the evolution of this unique site, which compelled us to reflect deeply upon which approach to adopt. Once purged of its various extensions and after having removed the technical installations on the roof, François Carpentier's building, with its characteristic 1950s morphology, regained a certain stability. Apart from the fact a proper reception of visitors was no longer guaranteed with the old museum and that the conditions of conservation of the collection no longer met international standards, two arguments mainly linked to urban integration finally lead us to develop a completely new project.
A 2-metre grid as a rule of composition
The infill between this concrete exoskeleton consists of large glass frames. Depending on the orientation and nature of the interior spaces, the glazing will receive a specific anti-UV treatment and screen printing to filter out certain views. The transparency of its façades allows this lively, open and welcoming building to reflect the surrounding buildings and their various facades.
A prefabricated concrete structure in the image of the D-Day landing infrastructures
Echoes of the technological challenge of the Mulberry B artificial harbour
In addition to the advantages offered by prefabricated concrete structural elements in terms of speed of assembly and quality of finish, their implementation directly echoes the engineering genius of the modules that make up the artificial harbour. Constructed on the other side of the Channel, the Phoenix caissons, quays, floats and floating roadway decks were then transported across the water to Arromanches-les-Bains for assembly.
