A new Museum of Arts, Architecture and Technology (MAAT) has opened in Lisbon. The MAAT museum is located in two buildings: the building of the former power station, which was rebuilt as an exhibition space and a new museum building, designed by British architect Amanda Livit and her bureau AL_A. Amanda Levete Architects. “For the first time, we saw Belem’s embankment chosen for the future museum six years ago,” comments Amanda Livit. - It was November, windy weather. The sun went down into the river and looked like an orange. Then we realized that we had to “play” with the reflection of the surfaces in the river, we had to take into account the strong Lisbon wind and a quick change of weather. So the idea was born to connect the embankment and the building. ”

The MAAT museum project also involves the creation of a pedestrian bridge that connects the roof to the adjacent street and a restaurant on it.

The ellipse-shaped building smoothly curves, echoing the embankment bends. The undulating facade of the museum is lined with 1500 white ceramic tiles, which reflects the surrounding landscape and changes the appearance of the building depending on the time of day. The tile was designed specifically for the museum facade and brought from Barcelona. Its manufacturer is the Catalan company Cumella, participating in the restoration of the mansions of Antonio Gaudi. On the roof there is an extensive terrace connected with the embankment promenade.

Amanda Livit was born in 1955 in South Wales, United Kingdom. In 2009 he opened his own architectural bureau LA_A, which today successfully builds and designs around the world. So, in 2011, LA_A won the competition for the project of restructuring the entrance to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. In the spring of 2016 - a competition for the construction of a mosque in Abu Dhabi. Amanda Livit is a laureate of several architectural awards, including the prestigious Stirling Award.

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The initiator of the construction of the museum MAAT and its main partner is the Portuguese energy company EDP. Construction is divided into two stages. The museum will start working in full in the spring of 2017. The current presentation of the finished exhibition space and the fully rebuilt facade of the building is timed to the Lisbon Architectural Triennial. According to the director of the MAAT museum, former curator of the MoMa museum in New York, Pedro Gadano, a new exhibition space is being created with the aim of incorporating the contemporary art of Portugal into the international cultural situation.