Architect	Ortner & Ortner
Date Built	2001
Location	MuseumsQuartier
Description
The Mumok website explains that the, ".... Museum moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien was founded on September 21, 1962, as the Museum of the Twentieth Century in the Swiss Garden, located in the Austrian Pavilion that had been built by Karl Schwanzer for the Brussels EXPO in 1958, and was refurbished as an exhibition hall. ..... On September 15, 2001, the Museum moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien was reopened in the MuseumsQuartier in Vienna’s historical center. This cubic building clad in basalt lava was built by architects Ortner & Ortner, and provides 4,800 m² of exhibition space for monographic or thematic exhibitions and alternating presentations of the museum’s own collection, which now comprise some 10,000 works of modernist and contemporary art." They add that, "... From the outside, the building appears like a dark, closed block, its roof curving down low on the edges. It is monolithically clad in anthracite grey basalt lava on the façades and roof surfaces: thus it is clearly set apart from the adjacent level and seems to emerge from the deep. Large connected interior units assure a maximum of flexibility.  A ten-meter wide outdoor stairway leads to the entrance plateau four meters above the courtyard level. Inside, a hall lit from above divides all of the levels into two differently proportioned groups of rooms. The entrance level is the centre of the building's height. Two main exhibition levels are above it and two below it. Another lower level is used for storage and utilities." "In terms of architectural design, the museum facilities are limited to general reduction. They are equipped with a sophisticated and flexible artificial lighting system which creates optimal presentation conditions. The upper exhibition hall receives natural light through a large opening in the curved ceiling. The other slit-like openings and the panorama window in the uppermost floor give visitors a view to the outside and help provide a sense of orientation."