Rijksmuseum
Amsterdam, Pays-Bas
RIJKSMUSEUM
(with the Ministerie van Onderwijs, Culture in Wetenschap et the Rijksgebouwendienst)
Architect: CRUZ Y ORTIZ ARQUITECTOS
Interior designer and museography: WILMOTTE & ASSOCIÉS
Restoration: S.R.A.L. STICHTING RESTAURATIE ATELIER LIMBURG
Manufacturer: GOPPION S.P.A., MEYVEAERT-BRUNS
Lighting: PHILIPS LIGHTING
Lightracks: BRONNENBERG B.V.
Signage: IRMA BOOM
Building services: ARCADIS
Consultant: VAN HOOGEVEST ARCHITECTEN
Lighting: BEERSNIELSEN LICHTONTWERPERS
Prototype: BRONNENBERG BV
12,000 sqm
2013
Museography of all the museum's collections.
Following the motto of the Rijksmuseum "Sense of time and feeling for beauty", Wilmotte & Associés created a minimalist museography to highlight the works, while preserving the volumes.
The interior layout is designed to highlight the original structure and to enhance the presentation of the collections, particularly through the transparency of the display cases. The museum building, in neo-Gothic and Renaissance style, contains a great variety of spaces that had to be coordinated. The vaults and ornamentation are still very present.
The choice of materials reveals a great sobriety. The colours of the walls and vaults are united in each space, on all surfaces regardless of the shapes and ornamentation, with the aim of creating a “neutral” environment for the enhancement of the objects.
Exhibits are made sacred by adjusting their height correctly, especially if they are well lit and maximum transparency is sought.
Jean-Michel Wilmotte
architect
The project focuses on a wide range of elements that allow the objects to be displayed while protecting them. In the spirit of creating cohesion between the different galleries, Wilmotte has developed matching display cases that reinforce the unity of the museum. The showcases and all other display objects are as unobtrusive as possible so as not to distract the visitor’s attention from the object on display. Six standard types of display cases have been designed. In order to meet the requirements of monumental objects or large collections of objects, a dozen special showcases have also been created.
In addition to the showcases, Wilmotte has created a whole range of furniture, from podia and pedestals to distance barriers, self-supporting partitions and visitor benches. These harmonious elements will accompany the visitor along a chronological journey from the Middle Ages to the 20th century.
