Zaha Hadid Architects’ Riverside Museum was won through a public competition in 2004 for a new iteration of the Glasgow Museum of Transport. The design responds to the dynamism of the site where the Kelvin and Clyde Rivers meet, as well as a brief that emphasised the idea of Glasgow being on the move. ZHA translated this into the ‘wave’ or ‘pleat’ form of the roof, represented in the model, along with the sharp bend that elongates the path between the city and the river. The result is a metal-cladded distinctive building that became a new cultural landmark, suggesting Glasgow as the cultural hub of Scotland, while connecting to the River Clyde’s shipbuilding and seafaring history. The project’s use of contemporary design techniques and materials, exemplified in the 3D printed model, is in keeping with Glasgow’s legacy of technological advancement, as a former major industrial city in the UK.
Apart from their symbolic meaning, The Riverside Museum’s walls and pleated roof also serve as a structural function that creates a vast open space without interference of columns, allowing for more exhibition possibilities. Further connection to the site context is provided by openings throughout the gallery space, which features a large surface of glass panels at both ends and smaller rectangular windows.
As Hadid stated, ‘The design, combining geometric complexity with structural ingenuity and material authenticity, continues Glasgow’s rich engineering traditions and will be part of the city’s future as a centre of innovation.’ The museum opened in June 2011 and is Zaha Hadid Architects’ second built project in Scotland, following Maggie’s Cancer Care Centre Fife in 2006. It won the Luigi Michletti Award for Best Science and Technology Museum in Europe 2012 and the European Museum of the Year Award (EMYA) in 2013.
Project Director
Jim Heverin
Project Architect
Johannes Hoffmann
Project Team
Achim Gergen, Agnes Koltay, Alasdair Graham, Andreas Helgesson, Andy Summers, Aris Giorgiadis, Brandon Buck, Christina Beaumont, Chun Chiu, Claudia Wulf, Daniel Baerlaecken, Des Fagan, Electra Mikelides, Elke Presser, Gemma Douglas, Hinki Kwon, Jieun Lee, Johannes Hoffmann, Laymon Thaung, Liat Muller, Lole Mate, Malca Mizrahi, Markus Planteu, Matthias Frei, Michael Mader, Mikel Bennett, Ming Cheong, Naomi Fritz, Rebecca Haines-Gadd, Thomas Hale and Tyen Masten
Competition Team
Malca Mizrahi, Michele Pasca di Magliano, Viviana R. Muscettola, Mariana Ibanez and Larissa Henke
