Am I actually still inside? Usually it’s easy to answer that question. In most buildings the answer to that question is obvious. Not so, for those entering Wolfsburg’s incredible Science Museum.
Yes, this building will get you dizzy without the aid of alcohol or any other substance – and that was exactly the effect that Pritzker Prize winning architect, Zaha Hadid, had in mind when she designed the place. The dynamic of the building is supposed to open one’s mind and make you think – which is as it should be when you’re visiting a science museum.
Despite the fact that it consists of around 27,000 cubic meters of concrete the building gives the impression of floating or hovering. This is because it’s filled with hallways while the main entrance remains comparatively small, all of which leads to an interesting blurring of the boundaries between in - and outside.
The main hall is not on the ground floor – it has been raised seven meters. And when you’re inside the building your perspective changes with every step, through skewed walls, kinky or hidden steel beams, warped views through slits in massive concrete walls and beveled niches.
A construction, that is so fantastic and fanciful, that many visitors have had difficulty finding the exit!
1 Willy-Brandt Place, Wolfsburg 38440
www.phaeno.de