British Museum Western Range Galleries Design Competition London, BM building architects contest
British Museum Western Range Galleries Design
post updated 2 March 2025
Design: Lina Ghotmeh Architecture
Location: Bloomsbury, central London, England, UK
Lina Ghotmeh Architecture announced as winner of Western Range competition
• British Museum selects award-winning Paris-based Lina Ghotmeh Architecture as the winner of its Western Range competition
• Director Nicholas Cullinan credited Ghotmeh’s ‘exceptional and materially sensitive architectural vision’ for the Western Range project
• Ghotmeh shared her excitement about the “journey for the renovation of the Western Range” and her team will now work with the Museum to develop initial designs by mid-2026 for this key stage in its Masterplan transformation project.
image courtesy of Lina Ghotmeh architecture studio
21 February 2025
British Museum Western Range Galleries Design Contest Winner
British Museum Western Range Galleries Architectural Competition Winner
LONDON, 21 February: The British Museum has today announced Lina Ghotmeh Architecture (LGA) has won the competition to redesign its Western Range galleries. A pivotal moment in the Masterplan project to transform the Museum’s historic building, the project will be one of the biggest cultural renovations undertaken anywhere in the world.
Over 60 teams applied to the two stage International Architectural Competition, which ran for nine months. Five shortlisted teams were invited to take part in the second stage, from which LGA emerged as the unanimous favourite.
image courtesy of Lina Ghotmeh architecture studio
LGA, which is led by the multi award-winning architect Lina Ghotmeh, was said to have shown a deep understanding and sensitivity towards the Museum, the complexity of collections’ display and artefacts’ interactions with diverse visitor groups. Ghotmeh’s vision especially resonated with the panel because of its ‘archaeological’ approach to architectural design.
Lebanese-born Ghotmeh was said to have likened each new project to an archaeological dig, looking at a building’s past to support the reimagination and ‘story’ of its future, with sustainability at its heart and a close observance to the use of natural materials. The panel felt this sentiment resonated with the Museum’s collection which spans two million years of human history.
picture courtesy of Lina Ghotmeh architecture practice
Ghotmeh’s practice is no stranger to significant commissions and has an impressive track record of delivering major cultural landmarks. Her work includes the recently completed Hermès Leather Workshop in Louviers, Normandy which opened in 2023 and the Estonian National Museum in Tartu. Ghotmeh has won and been nominated for high-profile awards including the Grand prix AFEX 2016 and the Mies Van der Rohe Award 2017.
George Osborne, Chairman of the British Museum and Chair of the Judging Panel, said: “We set out to find the best and I believe we’ve found her. In Lina Ghotmeh we have an architect who combines a deep sensitivity to the history of our great collection while being a voice for the future. We had many outstanding entries – and I thank the other practices for all their hard work – but I can say as chair of the judging panel, she was the standout winner. Her design ideas excited and enthused the trustees; when they become real buildings and galleries we know they will excite and enthuse our millions of visitors. When we moved into our current buildings years ago, 200 years ago the world was wowed. I believe they will be wowed again when this transformation of our great sculpture galleries, and much more, is complete.”
Model submitted by Lina Ghotmeh Architecture for competition:
render courtesy of Lina Ghotmeh architects studio
Dr Nicholas Cullinan, Director of the British Museum, said: “Lina Ghotmeh is an architect of extraordinary grace and gravitas. Her team’s proposals demonstrated an exceptional and materially sensitive architectural vision for the British Museum, and their ‘archaeological’ approach clearly understood the ambition for this project to be as much an intellectual transformation as an architectural one. Lina and her team have a track record for delivering unique and human-centred design with a timeless elegance. I am delighted we will be working together and excited for the years ahead at such a pivotal chapter for the Museum, embarking on a generationally significant project that will transform a third of our gallery space.”
Lina Ghotmeh, said: “My team and I are thrilled to embark on this journey for the renovation of the Western Range of the British Museum. This competition has been an exciting process shaped by dialogue and multiple voices. I am looking forward to continuing this rich and collaborative process as we work towards transforming this section of the museum into an extraordinary space — a place of connections for the world and of the world.”
“My gratitude to Dr. Nicholas Cullinan – Director of the British Museum, to George Osborne, Chairman of the British Museum and chairman of the jury as well as all the esteemed members of the jury for their trust in selecting our diverse team. We are honored to contribute to this holistic and publicly engaging transformation that will shape the museum’s future in the years to come.”
Lina Ghotmeh and Nicholas Cullinan in the Western Range:
photo © The Trustees of the British Museum
British Museum Western Range Galleries Architecture Competition
The Museum launched its international Western Range architecture competition in May 2024 and it closed in December 2024. Over nine months it received 60 entries from architecture practices across the globe who competed in a two-stage process which tested their creativity, skill and vision to put forward a concept to transform a third of the Museum’s gallery space in its iconic central London site.
Five teams were shortlisted by the expert judging panel which comprised of ten members of the architecture industry alongside the British Museum’s Director Nicholas Cullinan and Chair George Osborne.
A display of the finalists’ concept designs opened in December and was exhibited in the Round Reading Room at the British Museum.
Lina Ghotmeh Architecture and the wider team including: Ali Cherri – Artist, Purcell – Executive & Conservation Architect, Arup – MEP, Structural & Civil Engineering, Holmes Studio – Graphic Design & Wayfinding, Plan A – Design Team Coordination, will now work with the Museum’s team to move their winning concept and ideas to a final design approach which is expected to be shared by mid-2026.
Lina Ghotmeh in her atelier:
photo © Dion Barrett
Lina Ghotmeh Biography
Lina Ghotmeh — Architecture is an internationally acclaimed firm led by Lebanese-born architect Lina Ghotmeh, known for her award-winning, sustainable, and historically rooted designs. Raised in Beirut, Ghotmeh blends traditional craftsmanship with innovation, shaping a forward-thinking, ecological and inclusive approach to architecture.
Her philosophy, “Archaeology of the Future,” fosters a deep connection between history, nature, and materials. Notable projects include Stone Garden in Beirut (Dezeen Award, 2021), the 22nd Serpentine Pavilion (2023) in London, Ateliers Hermès, France’s first low-carbon, energy-positive building, and the Estonian National Museum (recipient of the Grand Prix Afex 2016 in collaboration with Dorell.Ghotmeh.Tane). Lina Ghotmeh — Architecture is also designing the AlUla Contemporary Art Museum in Saudi Arabia and the Bahrain Pavilion for Expo 2025.
Beyond practice, Ghotmeh has held leading academic roles at Yale, the University of Toronto, and Harvard GSD. Her work has earned prestigious honors, including the 2023 Great Arab Minds Award, the 2020 Schelling Architecture Award, and the French Architecture Académie’s Prix Dejean (2016).
A frequent speaker at global conferences, Ghotmeh’s work spans from small-scale objects to landmark museums, continuously pushing the boundaries of architecture with a humanist and future-oriented vision.
Expert Judging Panel
The judging panel comprised of leading experts in the field of architecture including Yvonne Farrell, Meneesha Kellay, Mahrukh Tarapor, and Sarah Younger.
Alongside Nicholas Cullinan were representatives from the British Museum’s Board of Trustees: George Osborne, Tracey Emin, Charlie Mayfield and Alejandro Santo Domingo, alongside former Interim Director Mark Jones.
British Museum Western Range Galleries Design images / information from BM 0n 210225
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British Museum Energy Centre Programme – Western Range:
image © Trustees British Museum
Previously on e-architect:
8 May 2024
British Museum international architectural competition news
image © Trustees British Museum
British Museum Western Range Architecture Competition
29 August 2024
The British Museum Western Range Galleries Renovation, Bloomsbury, central London, England, UK
photo courtesy of the British Museum
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