2008 - Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden

Page 74: View of the Small Courtyard of the
Residenzschloss, autumn 2008
Architect Peter Kulka explains his designs for the
membrane roof
TWO TOPPiNg-OUT CEREmONiEs
AND A sURPRisiNg FiND mARk ThE
PROgREss OF bUiLDiNg WORk AT
ThE mUsEUms DURiNg 2008
Modern architecture in a historical setting
In 2008 building work in the museums of the Staatliche
Kunstsammlungen Dresden once again continued apace.
The huge wounds left by the devastation of the Second
World War, which were evident particularly in the Residenzschloss
until well after the reunification of Germany, are
now being healed in an astonishing feat of effort. At the
same time, the buildings are being adapted to meet the
demands of modern museum operations and the exhibitions
installed for coming generations. Furthermore,
through the breathtaking structure being added to the
Albertinum, the works of art held there will be protected
from any future flooding. The visible progress of the construction
work was preceded by intensive planning and
discussion of every detail. For example, in November 2008
an international colloquium was held in the Residenzschloss
in association with the Technische Universität Dresden
entitled “Form and Function – 21st-century Museums in
Historical Buildings” which considered the ongoing reconstruction
of the Dresden Residenzschloss and its intended
future use. In particular, discussions took place concerning
the tense relationship between the parts of the building
which have already been rebuilt and those which have yet
to be completed, as well as the planned exhibitions, which
were compared with similar projects in other cities.
The Renaissance façades of the Small Courtyard
with the new membrane roof
Delicate membrane roof over the small Courtyard
One of the challenges when preparing the Residenzschloss
for use as a museum centre is the issue of how to make
the building accessible and provide visitor services on the
ground floor for at least 1,200,000 people per year. Since
its construction in the 16th century, and despite all the
various conversions and modernisation it underwent up
to the 20th century, the building has always been a defensive
structure. Planned, built and used for centuries as
a centre of power and prestige as the official seat of the
Electors and Kings, closed walls and few doors opening to
the outside give the impression of a fortified refuge in
accordance with the requirements of a 16th and 17thcentury
princely court. For the logistical demands of
21st-century museum operations, however, this is highly
unsuitable. The long lines of visitors that regularly formed
at the entrance to the Historisches Grünes Gewölbe
shouted out for a central visitor foyer to be constructed
which, after the completion of all the wings of the Palace,
would be large enough to accommodate ticket sales and
information desks and all the necessary infrastructure for
several hundred visitors at once, and also enable them all
to find their way to the various museums using suitable
guidance systems.
It was decided six years ago to turn the Small Courtyard
into such a central visitor foyer. In 2005 the design of the
Cologne and Dresden-based architect Peter Kulka for a
membrane roof supported only by rhombic steel structures,
which would allow daylight to flood into the courtyard,
was presented to the public. Construction work began in
October 2007. In spring 2008 scaffolding was conspicuously
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