This past February, Rem Koolhaas, Hon. FAIA, co-founder of Netherlands-based architecture firm OMA, and David Gianotten, the managing partner–architect of the firm were selected as this year’s designers of the MPavilion in Melbourne, Australia. Each year since 2014, the Naomi Milgrom Foundation, a local nonprofit that supports public architecture and design projects, has commissioned an international architecture firm to design a temporary pavilion for the city’s historic Queen Victoria Gardens. The last three pavilions were designed by Australian firm Sean Godsell Architects in 2014, Amanda Levete of London-based architecture studio AL_A in 2015, and Indian architect Bijoy Jain of Studio Mumbai last year.
OMA's MPavilion is a circular multifunctional structure designed for arts and music performances, entertainment, and events that can itself perform. Covered by a translucent floating roof, the pavilion is embedded in the landscape and made up of 12 different indigenous plants species. Inspired by ancient amphitheater, the venue transforms into multiple configurations, as one of its two tiered grandstands can rotate to create functions such as a stage, auditorium, and a playground. “The simple materiality of the pavilion is related to its direct surroundings, positioning the Queen Victoria Gardens itself—and the city of Melbourne—as a basis for activity and debate within the pavilion,” says Gianotten in a press release.
Construction is due to be completed in August and the pavilion will open to the public in October for a four-month program of workshops, talks, and arts and musical performances. The installation will run through February 2018. On June 19, a call for proposals was announced for professional designers and students to submit proposals for the program's events that will engage with OMA's design and suit the pavilion, with a deadline of July 11.
