Patna Museum Building, Architect, Winner, India, Design, Bihar Architecture, News

Museum in Patna, India : Bihar Building

New Museum in Patna, India design by Maki and Associates, Architects

post updated 17 Apr 2021 ; 13 Jun 2012

Museum of Bihar in Patna – Designs by Shortlisted Architects

Location: Patna, Bihar, northeast India

Museum of Bihar in Patna

Bihar Museum in Patna

Previously e-architect posted the winning Museum in Patna Building design by Maki and Associates. Today we have received images of the designs by all five of the shortlisted architects, all major global design studios.

2nd place design by Foster + Partners:
Museum of Bihar Building
picture from organisers

The winning design selected was that of the internationally known Maki and Associates of Japan along with their Indian partner Opolis. Maki & Associates were awarded 77.56% while Foster & Partners were a close 2nd at 75.59%.

1. Coop Himmelb(l)au (Vienna) with ARCHOHM
Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building
pictures from organisers

2. Foster + Partners (London) with C. P. Kukreja & Associates
Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building
pictures from organisers

Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building
pictures from organisers

3. Maki & Associates (Tokyo) with OPOLIS – winners
Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building
pictures from organisers

4. Snøhetta (Oslo) with Spacematters
Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building
pictures from organisers

5. Studio Daniel Libeskind (New York) with Morphogenesis
Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building
pictures from organisers

Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building Museum of Bihar in Patna Building
pictures from organisers

16 Feb 2012

Museum of Bihar in Patna

Maki & Associates (Tokyo) with OPOLIS win this competition.

MAKI & ASSOCIATES + OPOLIS SELECTED FOR THE UPCOMING BIHAR MUSEUM

The Department of Art, Culture and Youth (DACY) along with the Building Construction Department (BCD) of the Government of the State of Bihar is planning to develop an iconic museum in Patna, which stands on the site of the capital of India’s ancient Magadhan Empire, Pataliputra. This new facility, the Bihar Museum, will focus on the contributions made by this empire and the entire region of Bihar to the evolution of history and civilization in the Indian subcontinent and throughout Asia. It will be developed on a 13.9 acre site located on Bailey Road in Patna.

Museum of Bihar Building
images from competition organisers

Lord Cultural Resources is the master planning consultant for this museum and they also directed the architectural selection process. The architecture selection process undertaken by the BCD on behalf of DACY has finally produced a winner for designing the new Bihar Museum in Patna. The competition held on 28th and 29th November 2011 was evaluated by an Architectural Selection Committee (ASC) which included international as well as Indian participation and included architects, professionals from related disciplines and representatives of the sponsor.

The jury was chaired by the Chief Secretary, Government of Bihar, Mr. Navin Kumar, who was the non-voting chair and comprised of:

1. Mr. Anjani Kumar Singh, Principal Secretary, Department of Human Resource Development and Nodal Officer for the project
2. Mr. C. Lalsawta, Principal Secretary, DACY, Bihar
3. Mr. Sudhir Kumar, Secretary, BCD, Bihar
4. Mr. Subodh Gupta, International contemporary artist, Bihari origin
5. Dr. Martin Roth, Director, Victoria & Albert Museum, UK
6. Ms. Roisin Heneghan, Heneghan Peng Architects, Ireland
7. Prof. Neelkanth Chhaya, Dean, School of Architecture, CEPT, Ahmedabad

The architectural selection process was conducted in two stages:
Stage 1 Request for Expression of Interest (EOI)
Stage 2 Request for Proposals (RFP)

The first stage was open to Indian and international architects and this process attracted 26 leading architectural firms from around the world. This was the first time in India that an architectural competition for a museum facility has garnered this level of world class architects.

Bihar Museum Building Museum of Bihar Building Patna Indian building design proposal Indian architecture competition design
images from competition organisers

The winner was selected from design proposals presented by five world-leading shortlisted architectural firms each with their Indian architect partner firms:

1. Coop Himmelblau (Vienna) with ARCHOHM
2. Foster + Partners (London) with C. P. Kukreja & Associates
3. Maki & Associates (Tokyo) with OPOLIS
4. Snohetta (Oslo) with Spacematters
5. Studio Daniel Libeskind (New York) with Morphogenesis

The five submissions received in response to the Stage 2 Request for Proposals and Architectural Brief presented a range of unique responses that is a testament to the creativity and individual approach of this highly respected group of international and Indian architects.

After deliberating on all the points as per the pre-set evaluation criteria laid out in the RfP including the technical and financial evaluation, the winning design selected was that of the internationally known Maki and Associates of Japan along with their Indian partner Opolis. Maki & Associates were awarded 77.56% while Foster & Partners were a close 2nd at 75.59%. The Cabinet of the Government of Patna approved the selection of Maki & Associates on the ASC’s recommendation on 24th Jan 2012, after which the contract was signed in Patna on 25th January 2012. Maki & associates + Opolis have started to develop their competition design proposal into the final design.

Maki & Associates + Opolis – Proposal Description

The Maki scheme is a “campus” approach, carefully placing components of the museum on the site in relationships to provide a well organized and functional museum. Building components of varying heights are dispersed on the site and include an entrance pavilion, exhibition galleries, and administrative building and back of house support areas connected by circulation space. The education area is a separate building located in the garden. The gallery spaces are provided on two levels, organized around a courtyard space. Parking is at grade, at the western end of the site.

It was noted that the dispersed approach to locating individual components on the site provide flexibility in design development and the site plan provides the possibility for future expansion.

Proposed Bihar Museum – More Information

The collections to be displayed in this new museum will not just include historically significant stone, bronze and terracotta sculptures, but also many artifacts that will tell stories of Pataliputra and the lasting impact that the Magadhan culture has had on this region, India and the World. Stories of Buddha, Mahavir, Ashoka and other great political, literary and scientific world leaders from this period, including Nalanda University, will be depicted in this new museum using multimedia and interactive methods. World Class standards for display, conservation, and environmental sustainability will be employed here. This museum will also have a children’s section with a hands on-minds on focus.

Didarganj Yakshi – prized possession of the Patna Museum:
Didarganj Yakshi sculptures India
photo : Department of Art, Youth & Culture (DACY), Bihar

Lord Cultural Resources, the world’s oldest and largest cultural planning consultancy with more than 1800 museum and cultural planning assignments to its credit, are the master planning consultants for this project, and will be working along with DACY and the Building Construction Department (BCD) of the Government of Bihar in developing this museum.

Museum in Patna information received 160212 on behalf of the Government of Bihar, Department of Art, Culture and Youth

14 + 11 Oct 2011

Proposed New Museum in Patna

Site Location: state of Bihar, India

FIVE MAJOR ARCHITECTS COMPETING FOR MAJOR NEW MUSEUM IN INDIA

Five world-leading architectural firms are competing for the new museum of ancient India that is planned for Patna, capital of the Indian state of Bihar. The five internationally known architects, each with their Indian architect partner firms, are:

1. Coop Himmelb(l)au (Vienna) with ARCHOHM
2. Foster + Partners (London) with C. P. Kukreja & Associates
3. Maki & Associates (Tokyo) with OPOLIS
4. Snøhetta (Oslo) with Spacematters
5. Studio Daniel Libeskind (New York) with Morphogenesis

The Department of Art, Culture and Youth (DACY) of the Government of the State of Bihar is planning to develop this iconic museum in Patna, which stands on the site of the capital of India’s ancient Magadhan Empire, Pataliputra. This new museum will focus on the contributions made by this empire and the entire region of Bihar to the evolution of history and civilization in the Indian subcontinent and throughout Asia.

Images from the collection of the existing Patna Museum:
Tara ; Door Jamb ; Buddha
Indian Tara sculpture Indian Door Jamb gateway Buddha sculpture India
images : Lord Cultural Resources

The Government of Bihar has proposed to develop this new museum on a 13.9 acre site located on Bailey Road in Patna.

Lord Cultural Resources, the world’s oldest and largest cultural planning consultancy with more than 1800 museum and cultural planning assignments to its credit, are the master planning consultants for this project, and will be working along with DACY and the Building Construction Department (BCD) of the Government of Bihar in developing this museum. Lord Cultural Resources will also advise on the process for selecting the architect and other experts for this project.

Consequently, BCD has undertaken a two stage architecture selection process, in accordance with Lord Cultural Resources’ consultancy. The first stage of this process attracted 26 leading architectural firms, from which this shortlist of five has been selected.

Each of these five architectural firms is famed for museum buildings all over the world. One of the architects’ design concepts will be selected for the proposed museum. This may be the first time in India that an architectural competition for a museum facility has garnered this level of world class architects.

The jury for the architect selection process will include international experts along with officials from the Bihar government to recommend the best proposal for this one-of-a-kind museum. This process is expected to be completed by late December. Once the winning entry is selected, all the entries by the architects will be displayed in an exhibition in the existing Patna Museum. The museum is slated to be operational by mid 2015.

The preliminary project budget for this world-class museum is estimated to be INR 350 crores (inclusive of construction, exhibits, landscaping and all soft costs). The awe-inspiring permanent collection at this new museum, based on the holdings of the present Patna Museum, will be complemented by unique audiovisual and interactive attractions that will appeal to all age groups and socio-cultural backgrounds. Exhibition design will be the subject of a separate international competition that will follow at a future date.

Museum in Patna information received 111011

1. Coop Himmelb(l)au (Vienna) with ARCHOHM
Martin Luther Kirche Hainburg
photo © Duccio Malagamba

2. Foster + Partners(London) with C. P. Kukreja & Associates
Kuwait International Airport
picture : Foster + Partners

3. Maki & Associates (Tokyo) with OPOLIS
MIT Media Lab
photo courtesy of Andy Ryan

4. Snøhetta (Oslo) with Spacematters
Operahouse
photo : Statsbygg

5. Studio Daniel Libeskind (New York) with Morphogenesis
Jewish Museum Berlin
picture © Bitter Bredt

Location: Patna, India

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