Location: near Neuss, North Rhine-Westphalia, . Architect: Tadao Ando (Japan) Date: 2002.8-2004.7 Site Site: On the grounds of the Museum Insel Hombroich; 1,040 Acres Langen Foundation Case Study Material: Reinforced concrete; Glass; steel. Program: Museum

Program The Langen Foundation is located at the Raketenstation Hombroich, a former NATO base, in the midst of the idyllic landscape of 1,040 acres of land is being planned for an experiment in living with nature, where architects and artists from this list each envision his or her own program and its accompanying design. This lat- Japanese collection space the Hombroich cultural environment. ter effort, coordinated by the Berlin architectural office of Hoidn Wang Partner, is known as the “Hombroich spaceplacelab,” and requires that at least 90 percent of each site be leftfornature. The simple shape of space inside makes people to be peaceful and Ando got involved with the art program at Hombroich through the instigation of Müller, who knew of Ando’s museums in Japan and the United States Ando’s crafted concrete geometric forms interact compellingly Visitors enter through a cut-out in the semicircular concrete wall, opening up the view to the glass, steel and concrete building. with light, water, and earth in a manner that fits in with the Hombroich identity. In 1995, Ando designed an art pavilion for Müller on the former missile base; it appealed to another German art collector, Marianne focus on the art collections. Langen, who was searching for a home for the art that she had amassed with her late husband, Viktor, a businessman, which they had housed in Switzerland. In 2002, Ando revised his scheme to include 9,688 square feet of exhibition space for the Langens’ 500 works of Japanese art, dating from the 12th to the 19th centuries, and about 300 works of Modern Western art by Cezanne, Warhol, and Rothko, among others. Landscape and building Tadao Ando mentions that he designed a Japanese “Tranquility” museum. Through the picture, we can feel that way. The question is how to create this landscape to make people become tranquil. Based on the survey of tranquil, nature and water can make people be tranquil. Reflections in the glass skin and in the wa- Tadao Ando also said the natural environment in his project is not a wild nature, but a man made nature with human order. ter of the shallow pond dissolve borders Man made nature is what people think the nature ought to be. It always evokes the feeling of real nature when people look at it. Man and communicate an impression of weight- Section 1 made nature has power to make people be tranquil. lessness. The reflection of the sky on the pond and the transparency of the glass also connect Japnese collection building and water and sky together. The problem is how to make building be- come part of man made nature to make the whole landscape (man made nature + building) to have the power to make people become tranquil. In other words, Ando has to make the building connect closely to his man made nature. But how??? Plan Nature and tranquil Man made nature and tranquil

Modern collection space

This space is a little bit more vivide than the Japanese collection space Elevation because it is a space for modern art, but it still simple shape with soft sunlight from skylight. Nature Man made nature Man made building

Section 2 Stright line Cherry trees Parallel stright line The order (straight line, A path, bordered by a row of cherry trees, guidevisitors around the pond to the entrance on the longitudinal side of the building. The and parallel) and reflec- Stairs and rump row of cherry trees create a stright line parallel with the concrete path. tion of water and glass The material of path and building are the same, and have same color. The simple geometry of building also has stright line which re- make the building become Man made Man made Morden I and II collection late to the stright line of the row of cherry tree. In this way, the man made nature, the concrete path, and the building are created re- part of man made nature. Nature nature building lation among each other. The man made nature re- maind the feeling of na- ture. Now the building and man made nature have the power to make people Ground level become tranquil. A 26.565˚

e B

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Parallel stright line Soil slope with grass

The man made soil slope whcih grass grows on create a stright line parallel to the building. Under ground This create relation between building and its level environment. The soil slope is man made but Inside (mass) it is the symbolic of nature. The parallel of the top of the soil slope and the building create an Between mass and void new order between building and man made Outside (void) Translation space nature. In here, building and man made na- Stairs and rump can slow down the movement of The rump slow down the movement of people and also give them a people to keep them be peaceful and tranqility. space to enjoy art. ture is not seperated, but as a whole in human The glass box create a space between void and mass (in- mind. In other words, the building become part side and out side), and it also make the transation from Under groud of man made nature, and man made nature outside to inside smoothly in order to keep people in the level also become part of building. tranquil state.