Museum Wattens

Concept 2007-2011

Following on from the first concept for a "treasure chamber" in 2003, a new attempt to present archaeological finds from Wattens was made in 2007, as part of a joint initiative with Arno Grünberger/spurwien. The idea was to present the town's industrial history as well. An existing building in the centre of the town was to be adapted for the new concept. In this concept, architecture takes up the theme of "layers" with respect to both the material and the design. The building is faced with a pre-stressed second façade, and the lift in front of it is shifted out of its axis, so that it becomes a "time tunnel", enabling the visitor to look back into the past. This approach is pursued further in the design of the exhibition. What happens at any location creates overlayering - physical and/or temporal - which then has to be excavated layer by layer. This process of excavation is accompanied by interpretations, and these in turn create their own layers, by means of which the past is viewed. The multimedia presentation operates with these layers, crossfading animation, sound and interaction. Only the artefacts are real, yet they are no longer isolated, but embedded within a context. The history of Wattens paper is commemorated by means of an installation in the form of a waterfall (water as a "working material" and as a watermark), combining the elements of information and staged presentation. A virtual picture book and an interactive model of the town demonstrate the development of Wattens and the role of the Swarovski factory within this context. Following a decision by the local council of Wattens, the project was rejected for budgetary reasons in May 2011.