M+ - Permasteelisa Group

The M+ art museum opened in 2021 in the West Kowloon cultural district of Hong Kong. It houses 20th and 21st century art, including visual art, design, architecture and moving image.

Designed by Herzog & de Meuron, this monumental work of architecture features a building envelope that integrates precast concrete, terracotta tiles, and aluminium windows. The panels lining the tower’s façade facing Victoria Harbour have grooves for insetting an LED lighting display system, creating a gigantic screen for works of art. The main horizontal section of the building houses exhibition spaces, while a tower is home to restaurants, gardens, offices and research facilities.

Brand: Permasteelisa, Gartner

Architect: Herzog & de Meuron

Contractor: Blue Poles

Design team: Herzog & de Meuron with TFP Farrells

Client: West Kowloon Cultural District Authority

The project

The concept

A large public space is created by elevating the building from the ground. The design’s ceramic tiles are inspired by traditional Chinese glazed roof tiles – the terracotta panels and open sections of the façade were installed to the pre-cast concrete elements at the supplier’s factory. This unitised approach guaranteed minimal installation on site and resulted in higher quality in relation to weather tightness and longevity.

What did we do?

We designed, engineered, manufactured and installed a total of 31,000 sqm of façade, including the curtain wall, skylight, precast ceramic façade system, and associated works for the podium and tower. We also designed, supplied and installed the LED media façade video display lighting system – a total of 13,000 metres of LED media bars!

Key facts

Year completed

2020

Building height

66m

Total façade supplied

31,000 sqm

M+