Situated in Finland’s oldest city, the proposed museum responds to Turku’s historical legacy alongside its emerging status as a hub for science, business, and culture. The building is designed to integrate with the typologies of the surrounding area, incorporating the linearity of the industrial buildings at the port, as well as the small-town charm and traditional pitched roofs of the adjacent neighbourhood.

The stepped design of the museum’s eastern façade embraces the adjacent Linnanpuisto Castle Park, drawing it into the building and along the waterfront. The foyer becomes a continuation of the public space, acting as a “public square” open to all with a strong visual connection to the sea. This becomes a welcoming space during cold weather and promotes indoor-outdoor connectivity during warmer months when the restaurant, winter gardens, and auditorium open onto the waterfront promenade.

With environmental sensitivity at the core of the design, the museum is constructed of timber and built atop a recycled concrete plinth. Its sloped roofs serve a dual purpose, efficiently managing snow and rainfall while maximizing the southern sun exposure for the solar panels. The frosted glass materiality of prefabricated photovoltaic elements integrated within the exterior façades creates an almost crystal, ice-like texture responding to the winter landscape of the area. Transparent glass surrounds entries to the foyer, revealing the inviting and warm wooden interior.

The linear and modular layout provides a dynamic and adaptable structure, with the central foyer enhancing the urban public space. To accommodate the changing nature of exhibitions, the layout of the museum spaces consists of three “fingers” designed to allow for various spatial configurations, with folding doors facilitating a clear division or a seamless flow between the “public square” and exhibition spaces. The simplicity and purity of the structural form accommodates different needs of temporary and permanent exhibitions — physical elements and historical artifacts can be presented below with digital projections on the vaulted ceilings complementing the exhibition content, seamlessly merging past and future.