The backdrop of the project is the merging of four, sometimes considered very different, museums. The National Gallery, The Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, The Norwegian Museum of Architecture and The National Museum of Contemporary Art is now The New National museum of Art, Architecture and Design.
Kiss The Frog! Is both a celebration of the new museum and the first project to manifest its ambitions for the future, exploring the aesthetics of transformation, referring to genre transcendence both as method, expression and experience.
The concept for the temporary art pavilion is based on the fairytale, in which a beautiful, rich prince, after been thrown an evil spell on, is trapped within the shape of a frog. One day, when a princess kisses him, he is transformed back to the prince he really is, and they live happily ever after.
The Frog can, with its organic shape, be seen as an embodiment of the museums transformation, representing the ongoing reinterpretation of interdisciplinary art, challenging the boundaries between art, architecture, design and popular culture. It is at the same time a mediator between the past and the future, connecting the old National Gallery and the new Art Hall.
Building client: OBOS
Main constructor: Veidekke Entreprenør as
Under constructor: Hallmaker as, Graboplan kft
Tullin 2005
Saturday the 28th of May was the official opening of Tullinløkka 2005. The exhibition in the Frog will be on untill Sunday September 11th. The exhibition itself, as well as all happenings, seminars and lectures will be open for public for 15 weeks during the summer 2005.
Name
The name, or title, ‘Kiss the Frog! The Art of Transformation’ is inspired by mmw architect of Norway’s temporary paviliong. The name is related both to the architecture presented and the content and attitude of the exhibition.
T2005 is not only signalising the merging of the four institutions (The National Gallery, The Museum of Contemporary Art, The Museum of Decorative Arts and Design and The Museum of Architecture) into the new National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, it is also a part of the national celebration of the 100 years anniversary since the liquidation of the union between Sweden and Norway, giving Norway status as an independent national state.
Brief History
As a part of the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design’s ambition mmw architects of Norway was asked to develop a holistic architectural solution to generate more public interest around the artistic events at Tullinløkka, Oslo.
The project’s goal was tripartite: 1. The celebration of 1905 (The Nation / State 100 years) 2. Tullinløkka as the future arena for the new National Museum 3. A celebration of, by and for the people with a broad appeal and a high artistic integrity
The Architecture > the exhibition concept 1 > The Frog > the temporary main pavilion >
The biggest pavilion is named ‘The Frog’. It’s fitted with 4 entrances – 1 main with 3 supplementary emergency exits.
The exhibition concept is based on a pneumatic principal. A self-supporting construction is erected by establishing a higher air pressure inside a space defined by a membrane, than found on the outside. Like a beach ball or an airbed, a powerful fan fills the indoor space with fresh air and keeps the construction up.
The walls appear as concave planes growing out from the floor. The membrane used is a green colour, opaque PVC weave with a fire retardant layer. The inside has a white surface allowing projections of film, photo and digital sources to be displayed.
2> The Harmonica > semi-permanent pavilion
‘The Harmonica’ works as a vital exhibition hall – kunsthall – for the National Museum, and as a sign telling about the future museum building that will come here. Hopefully the construction of this will start during 2006. The Harmonica will exist parallel to this process as a fresh box keeping up the artistic activities on the site.
The Architecture > The Frog’s memorial dimensions
The Frog and The Harmonica have a floor area of 2005 sqm.
> of course because the National Museum and Norway is celebrating right now – in 2005
The Frog’s body has a floor area of 1240 sqm
> to commemorate Håkon Håkonsons second unification of Norway after the civil war from 1130 to 1240.
The Harmonica’s floor area is 872 sqm
> to commemorate the battle by Hafsfjord and the first unification of Norway by Harald Hårfagre.
The non-pneumatic part of the Frog – the legs have each floor area of 82 sqm
> to commemorate a (in Norway) legendary breaking of a ski pole in 1982
The entrance of The Frog has a floor area of 51 sqm
> to commemorate that Norway in 1951 got the first statistics on immigration
The technical area of The Harmonica is 54 sqm
> to honour ‘Nusse’ – Norway’s first computer, which was born in 1954
Other vital dimensions:
The atrium of The Frog has a floor area of 630 sqm.
At highest The Frog’s ceiling is 13.5 meters above the ground.
The pressure inside The Frog is equivalent to the pressure you will feel if you submerge your head 6cm (!!!) under water.
The weight of the total membrane used for The Frog is app. 3.0 metric ton.
A walk around The Frog’s exhibition from the main entrance and back will be about 179 meters long if you walk along the centreline of the curves. If you walk a little off this line, to one of the sides, you have easily walked 200 meters.
The length of a centreline walk through the Frog’s pneumatic part is about 112 meters. If you choose to go further towards the periphery, count closer to 150 meter.
The Frog’s legs are 27 meters long.
For more information on the exhibiting artists check out the webpages of the National Museum for Art, Architecture and Design