Orange Regional Museum's winning design
The $8 million Orange Regional Museum has been unveiled by Australian architecture firm CRONE, following its completion in November. Covering 1,300 sqm, the museum also houses an exhibition space, visitor information centre, café and council office space.
The firm won a competitive tender process in 2013, based upon a preliminary sketch of the team’s vision of the project, which tied together the new museum, an existing library and art gallery to create a civic square and public space.
Today, the museum hosts temporary and permanent exhibitions on a variety of themes including settlement of the region, mining, the built environment, agriculture, migration, significant events and individuals from the local area.
Intended as a flexible space it can be used for a variety of functions including outdoor exhibitions or simply an area for visitors to relax.
“We are extremely proud to deliver this contemporary designed building for Orange, which forms an integral part of the community’s civic fabric,” remarked CRONE associate, Ashley Dennis.
“When designing the museum, we were confident the contemporary design of the building would be embraced by the local community and be reflective of the culture that Orange represents today,” she said.
A key feature of the design is the grassed roof, which rises from the existing lawn, to provide a public green space and new vantage point across the city of Orange. Intended as a flexible space, it can be used for a variety of functions including outdoor exhibitions.
CRONE design director Niall Durney added that the business was drawn to the project for its opportunity to create a forward thinking design that would contribute to the community and create a new destination for the area.
“As our first regional design project, it also ties into the new direction for the company to diversify beyond commercial buildings,” he said.
CRONE also strategically created a civic square between the new and existing buildings, and included amphitheatre seating and café as an adaptable area for events and activations.
Orange mayor John Davis OAM commented that the way the Orange community has already embraced the new museum building is a sign of the quality of its design.
“The grass roof is already a drawcard both for visitors and locals. Every school holidays there are young families and children enjoying the space by rolling down the slope,” he said.
“Along with the theatre, the gallery and the library, the new museum building helps create a fantastic new precinct and I’m looking forward to seeing how the way the community uses it will evolve.”