The project is worth $ 20 million and is part of a larger renovation plan also commissioned by Ando.
An exhibition gallery in the form of a "chapel" will also appear in the complex of laboratories. The useful area of the new building will be 3,000 square meters. It will look like a two-story elongated rectangular building clad in red sandstone - a rare departure from the architect's commitment to raw concrete surfaces. The circular glazing, the isolated position and the abundance of greenery around are reminiscent of one of the main landmarks of Ando's work - Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth House.
The German pavilion at the International Exhibition in Barcelona Misa served, apparently, as a prototype for a reservoir surrounded by walls to the left of the building and a geometrized scheme of paths.
The two-storey building makes up only a quarter of the new building's space. The rest of the premises are located underground - these are storerooms and restoration workshops, where an excessive amount of sunlight can be detrimental to exhibits.
Next to the pond is planned a rectangular courtyard deepened into the ground, from where you can get to the underground part of the building.
