Wikipedia

Centre Pompidou-Metz

Location: Metz,France
Design firm: Shigeru Ban Architects
Typology: Museum
Years: 2003–2010
Status: Complete

Facade facts

Facade summary: An undulating translucent PTFE-coated fiberglass membrane stretched over a hexagonal timber grid-shell, juxtaposed with the frameless glass endings of three cantilevered exhibition tubes.
Documented intention: Shigeru Ban designed the timber roof to resemble a traditional Chinese woven bamboo hat found in Paris, seeking to protect the museum while maintaining visual porosity. The three cantilevered gallery prisms were specifically oriented to point directly toward local historical landmarks,acting as giant viewfinders.
Street relationship: At the base, the retractable sliding glass doors allow the interior forum to merge completely with the outdoor parvis, erasing the traditional boundary of the museum entrance.
Climate relationship: The wide overhangs of the canopy provide solar shading to the glazed ground floor,while the PTFE-coated fiberglass reflects heat,stays clean via rainfall, and allows naturally diffused daylight to illuminate the central volume.
Window pattern: Monumental flat glazed planes covering the full cross-section of the rectangular gallery ends.
Glazing: Insulated double-glazed units with high optical clarity.
Depth: Extremely deep and layered, with the cantilevered galleries projecting far beyond the envelope footprints and the roof canopy introducing varying multi-layered heights.
Rhythm: The diagonal, hexagonal pattern of the timber grid creates a continuous,flowing organic rhythm, contrasted by the monumental static grids of the glazing.
PTFE-coated fiberglass membrane: PTFE-coated fiberglass membrane — Main roof canopy — Smooth,textile-like
Glued laminated timber (Glulam): Glued laminated timber (Glulam) — Structural roof grid-shell — Natural wood grain
Glass: Glass — Ends of cantilevered galleries and ground floor curtain walls — Clear,low-E coating
Reinforced concrete: Reinforced concrete — Exhibition gallery tubes — Smooth,raw
Timber grid-shell structure: Double-curvature glulam beam structure overlaid in a hexagonal pattern,connected by specialized steel joint plates.
Tensile membrane roof: Pre-stressed PTFE-coated fiberglass fabric stretched over a secondary steel frame mounted onto the timber grid-shell.
Suspended frameless curtain wall: Large-span glass structural walls located at the open end of each cantilevered concrete box.

Description

The building's envelope is composed of two primary components: the monumental, organic roof canopy and the rectilinear gallery boxes. The roof canopy is an intricate, double-curved hexagonal timber grid-shell that spans across the entire site like an umbrella. It is clad with a highly reflective, translucent PTFE-coated fiberglass membrane. This roof is punctured by three cantilevered concrete gallery tubes. The ends of these tubes are sealed with large, frameless curtain walls, creating expansive glazed windows looking out into the city. At the ground level, the perimeter is wrapped in highly transparent, retractable glazed curtain walls that can be slid open.

Visual analysis

The structure offers a dramatic visual contrast between the organic, sweeping curves of the white textile roof and the rigid, geometric concrete and glass boxes that project through it. At night, the translucent skin transforms the entire building into a glowing urban lantern.