MSN - excellent background architecture

06 of March '25

Robert Konieczny

Photo credit: Stepan Rudik

The opening of the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw has attracted attention and sparked a lively discussion, which shows how much we still have to do in terms of architectural education. I believe that the reception of the new building is often unfair and opinions are hurtful. Although Thomas Phifer's building does not aspire to the status of a world masterpiece, it is certainly a solid example of architectural craftsmanship. It is an excellent background building - appropriately subdued to blend well into the context of the site.

Interestingly, the originally planned winning competition design by Christian Kerez was quite similar, at least from the outside. Looking at both proposals, we see a certain consistency in approach - both Kerez and Phifer obviously started with a careful analysis of the context, which in this case is very difficult. After all, designing in the vicinity of the Palace of Culture, an icon of Warsaw that dominates its surroundings, it was difficult to make any other decision than to create a building that would not impose itself, rather complement the existing space.

The mobile pavilion of the Museum of Modern Art

This situation is reminiscent of the competition for the Breakthroughs Dialogue Center in Szczecin, where we faced a similar challenge: the neighboring Philharmonic Hall was a strong and distinctive building, and we were sure it would quickly become an icon of the city. We consciously decided to relegate our building to the background, hiding it underground so that the facilities would not compete with each other. Kerez and Phifer had a similar approach, which I think shows the great class of these architects.

In the competition that Kerez won, there were a lot of proposals with strange, sometimes caricatured shapes that would have looked ridiculous next to the Palace of Culture. At the time, there was a discussion, a simplistic one similar to the current one, about what the new museum should look like. Many people (including architects) demanded an iconic, surprising form, like Frank Gehry's. Kerez's proposal initially had little support.

His concept, though it did not live to see realization, nevertheless remains fascinating. He opted for an interior whose vaulted ceilings, with their characteristic rounded forms, would give it a unique character and provide an interesting fifth façade visible from the upper floors of the Palace of Culture.

The mobile pavilion of the Museum of Modern Art

When we were invited to a closed competition for a mobile pavilion for the Museum of Modern Art in 2010, we were inspired by these unrealized vaults and transformed them in our own way. Kerez was at a very interesting stage of his career at the time, and his design expressed this perfectly. Today he is a well-known and respected architect with great projects all over the world. I regret that his museum was not built in Warsaw.

However, this does not mean that Phifer's design is bad. It's a solid building that creates the right conditions for displaying art - and that's a lot. I know museums where the architecture overwhelms the works. Phifer's museum is the perfect backdrop for them.

I would compare the Museum of Modern Art to the Silesian Cultural Zone, the complex of buildings surrounding the Spodek. Although they are hardly juxtaposable objects, in terms of expressiveness the Palace of Culture in Warsaw resembles the Spodek - also formally strong and easily memorable. Rather than trying to outdo the hall's iconic silhouette, all of the later buildings - the Silesian Museum [designed by Riegler Riewe Architekten - editor's note], the NOSPR [designed by Konior Studio - editor's note] and the ICC [designed by JEMS Architects - editor's note] - were designed as "boxes," thoughtfully designed for the background, enriching the space but not focusing attention on themselves. If each had taken the form of an expressive sculpture, a cacophony of forms would have resulted. Thanks to good architects, selected, by the way, in a competition procedure, however, the Culture Zone defends itself and will do so for years to come.

The mobile pavilion of the Museum of Modern Art

The same is true of Warsaw's Museum of Modern Art. While Kerez's design would certainly be unusual, we can be happy to have received Thomas Phifer's realization. His museum fits harmoniously into the urban fabric, and I am convinced that with time it will be more and more appreciated - just like the World Trade Center towers, initially criticized, and with time considered almost impossible to replace. Time will probably verify these ill-informed assessments of the buildings, made without looking at the broader context.