In the 20s of September, the Museum of Contemporary African Art - Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (MOCAA) will open on the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town. The Thomas Heatherwick studios managed the almost impossible: the port grain elevator, built back in 1921, turned into an unexpectedly spectacular building with a complex, cosmic atrium, modern exhibition spaces and a luxury hotel.
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The authors of the project admit that they didn’t have many opportunities, since the 42 vertical concrete pipes of the elevator did not form any internal space at all. Masking the brutal, deliberately industrial nature of the 57-meter building also did not make any sense. It remained only to turn the disadvantages into advantages. An ellipsoid atrium with adjacent galleries was literally cut out in the central part. The space, which is almost sacral in nature due to the glass roof, turned out to be very bright. But part of the pipes had to be cut to the ground, their place was taken by the necessary exhibition spaces.
Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa has to accommodate the world's largest collection of contemporary African art. It got its name in honor of the German businessman and philanthropist Johan Zeitz (Jochen Zeitz), who donated his collection to the museum. But the project is non-commercial and it is assumed that the entrance to the museum will be available absolutely for everyone.
The openings of the concrete structures of the upper floors of the former elevator were covered with convex glass panels, so that in the dark the whole building turns into a sort of lighthouse. In this part of the hotel is located The Royal Portfolio with 28 rooms with a specific bar and a SPA-zone on the roof. The design of its interiors was carried out by the hostess Liz Biden herself. In order to beat the contrasting combination of hard industrial style with the bright sophistication of modernity, which was set by the architects, she preferred luxurious eclecticism, combining the very different items of local designers, artists and manufacturers.
