Some sad news coming out of Reims, France: the city's plan for a 120,000-square-foot art museum designed by renowned British architect David Chipperfield has been tabled due to high costs, adding the proposal to a meaty list of recently scrapped starchitecture. After the French government pulled its $10M contribution towards funding the $54M museum, known as Musée des Beaux-arts, the mayor of Reims has decided to abandon the project and instead focus on redeveloping a sports complex that needs to be brought up to safety standards.
Chipperfield's design, which won the commission in 2012, envisioned a three-volume structure with a translucent façade made of marble slabs and glass ceramic panels. Originally anticipated to open in 2018, the building would have prioritized natural lighting, featuring a 40-foot-high hall that towers over an excavation site filled with medieval artifacts.
· Chipperfield's Musée des Beaux-Arts Nixed for Being to Costly [ArchDaily]
· All David Chipperfield posts [Curbed National]
· All David Chipperfield posts [Curbed National]