MISSIONS
As a museum dedicated to contemporary art in Luxembourg, the Mudam aims to be attentive to all current artistic disciplines. The Mudam's cultural aim is based on a conception of art as a poetic distance from the world. Its key words are freedom, innovation and critical spirit, all to be taken with humour. The program also encourages all means of expression while questioning our habits and trends. It aims to capture not only a contemporary way of thinking but also the aesthetic language of an era in the making. The Mudam Collection bears witness to contemporary creation in all its technical and aesthetic forms, and remains open to all artistic disciplines: painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, but also design, fashion, graphic design and new media are placed in relation to each other.
ARCHITECTURE
The asymmetrical V-shape with 45 degree angles rises from the ruins of Fort Thüngen. Fort Thüngen, named after Baron Von Thüngen, the Austrian commander of the fortress, was built in 1732 according to plans drawn in 1688 by Vauban. The introverted form of the fortress, folded around its fortification walls, is reflected in the new building by Leoh Ming Pei. The geometry of the museum is thus a kind of continuation of the fortress. The contrast with the fortress is all the more interesting as Pei composes his building through a very geometric lens, adopting both modern and classical forms. His architecture is formalist, yet sober and monumental. Built in Burgundy stone, the Mudam Luxembourg incorporates a metal and glass structure with a spire that rises to a height of almost thirty meters. In 1997, the project for the construction of the Musée d'Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean was officially conceived under the watchful eye of the ministries of Robert Goebbels and Erna Hennicot-Schoepges. The construction work officially began on 22 January 1999.
ARCHITECTES
The Mudam is designed by Leoh Ming Pei and built by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects in association with Georges Reuter, which wonderfully complements the historic military site of Fort Thüngen, and gives the place its prestigious character.