Neues Sammlungszentrum für das Ungarische Naturhistorische Museum , Debrezin/ Ungarn

Verfahrensart
Nicht offener Planungswettbewerb

Wettbewerbsaufgabe
Gegenstand des Planungswettbewerbs ist der Entwurf des neuen Sammlungszentrums des Ungarischen Naturkundemuseums Debrezin, die Gestaltung der unmittelbaren Umgebung des Gebäudes und dessen Integration in das Planungsgebiet (Science Park).

Die Gestaltung des Sammlungszentrums muss neben Funktionalität auch die zukunftsorientierte, innovationsfreudige Denkweise der Institution widerspiegeln. Das äußere Erscheinungsbild und die Innenausstattung können auf den Sammlungsbereich und die wissenschaftlichen Leitlinien des Museums verweisen, müssen jedoch in erster Linie Aspekte der Nutzbarkeit und Nachhaltigkeit berücksichtigen.

Von den insgesamt 42.839 m² Nettofläche des Sammlungszentrums sind 17.097 m² für die verschiedenen Sammlungsräume vorgesehen, die in erster Linie als Lagerräume dienen. Die Funktionen der Bibliotheks- und Dokumentensammlungen benötigen eine Fläche von 8.555 m², während die Labore, Werkstätten und zugehörigen Räume weitere 2.030 m² einnehmen. Die Forschungsräume und Büros benötigen eine Fläche von 2.490 m², ergänzt durch weitere 1.200 m² für Besprechungs- und Vortragsräume. Der voraussichtliche Flächenbedarf für Sozialräume, Verkehrsflächen und sonstige Räume beträgt 11.467 m².

Competition assignment
The aim of the planning competition is to design the New Collection Center for the Hungarian Natural History Museum in Debrecen, the immediate surroundings of the building, and its integration into the planning area (Science Park).

In addition to functionality, the design of the collection center must also reflect the institution's forward-looking, innovative mindset. The exterior appearance and interior design may refer to the museum's collection and scientific guidelines, but must primarily take into account aspects of usability and sustainability.

Of the collection center's total net area of 42,839 m², 17,097 m² is earmarked for the various collection rooms, which will primarily serve as storage rooms. The library and document collections require an area of 8,555 m², while the laboratories, workshops, and associated rooms occupy a further 2,030 m². The research rooms and offices require an area of 2,490 m², supplemented by a further 1,200 m² for meeting and lecture rooms. The estimated space requirement for social rooms, circulation areas, and other rooms is 11,467 m².

Jury
Bernert Zsolt, Ungarisches Naturhistorisches Museum (Vorsitz)
Perényi Lóránt, Ministerium für Bauwesen und Verkehr (Co-Vorsitz)
Buza Andrea, Ministerium für Kultur und Innovation
Dr. Barcsa Lajos, Stadtverwaltung der Stadt Debrecen
Gábor István, Stadtverwaltung der Stadt Debrecen
Törös Attila, Universität Debrecen, Stadtverwaltung der Stadt Debrecen
Pecsenye Béla, Architektenkammer des Landkreises Hajdú-Bihar
Győrffy Zoltán, Architektenkammer des Landkreises Hajdú-Bihar
Détári György

Weitere Informationen zum Ergebnis unter:
mtm.gyk.debrecen.hu/nyertesek

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Press release by Sordo Madaleno | 3 February 2026

Sordo Madaleno with építész stúdió and Buro Happold have been selected as the winners of the international design competition for the 43,000 sqm New Collection Centre for the Hungarian Museum of Natural History in Debrecen

Winning team chosen from shortlist of 12 architects for landmark scientific facility, marking Sordo Madaleno's first European cultural project, a third-generation Mexican architecture practice which operates studios between London and Mexico City.

Sordo Madaleno with építész stúdió and Buro Happold have been selected to design the 43,000 sqm New Debrecen Collection Centre of the Hungarian Museum of Natural History. Appointed from a shortlist of 12 architects, this marks the first European cultural project for the third-generation Mexican architecture practice, which operates studios between London and Mexico City.

Debrecen, the second largest city in Hungary, is the focus of major urban and university infrastructure development that includes the relocation of the Hungarian Museum of Natural History from Budapest to the edge of Debrecen's Great Forest. The Museum’s New Collection Centre by Sordo Madaleno with építész stúdió and Buro Happold is focussed on the controlled storage and study of over 11 million objects and its site lies within the University of Debrecen Science Park about 4km from the new Natural History Museum building.

Architectural concept - Building as Vessel

The New Debrecen Collection Centre follows the simple logic and elegant utility of the traditional Hungarian clay vessel: a building intended to protect and incubate. Drawing from the design team’s research into the region's craft traditions and material histories—where clay vessels and earthenware have long been used for conserving produce— the 141m by 83m elongated rectilinear building reads as a solid, elemental and timeless design.

The Centre is optimized for controlled storage, efficient research operations, and the long-term production and preservation of knowledge. The centre's defining feature is its stratified brick façade referencing Hungary's geological and material history with the soils used for the manufacturing its bricks originating from different regions of the country. The brick tones, too, create a material representation of the Collection Centre's disciplines - geology, fossils, animal life, human activity, and ecology - and its mission to understand the bio- and geodiversity of not only the Carpathian Basin but also the entire earth. These subtle variations enliven the building's monolithic form which extends the surrounding landscape with its low-lying fields and wide horizons. A discrete arrival point reinforces the notion of a building designed for security, collections care, and conservation.

The plan is radically lucid, ensuring optimal environmental and technical performance. There are three key areas over three floors and a basement level. These are divided into 28,000 sqm of storage for the archive, 6,000 sqm of study spaces including conservation laboratories, and a welcoming triple-height atrium for visiting student groups and research professionals. Within the top-lit atrium, selected items from the Museum's collection are displayed, creating an exhibitions and gallery space with adjoining lecture halls that can also be used for events. This makes it an ideal public offering for researchers, students, and educational groups. Within the study and laboratory areas most used by staff day-to-day, controlled light and ventilation is introduced through internal courtyards, thereby ensuring workspace comfort with generous views outdoors and without compromising on the rigorous museum-standard conservation requirements.

Fernando Sordo Madaleno describes the project,

“The Centre’s staff are stewards of the objects, and the architecture becomes an extension of that stewardship. Within this layered ecology of care, the object is framed not as an isolated artefact but as an embodiment of life-worlds and landscapes that nourish reciprocal relationships. Our building reflects this mutuality, providing a space of unity between conservator, stakeholder, architecture, and environment.”

Jury Comment:

The jury highlighted that the winning design by Sordo Madaleno with építész stúdió and Buro Happold meets the role of the support institution well with its optimal spatial organisation for the stores, study spaces and laboratories while ensuring the long-term preservation of the collections, the smooth operation of research as well as the efficient conduct of international scientific cooperation. It was said that the design team paid special attention to sustainability, security and innovative logistics solutions relating to the collections, so the Centre can excel in serving as the scientific support base of the Hungarian Museum of Natural History.

Client:
Municipality of the City of Debrecen
Hungarian Museum of Natural History

Competition organiser:
Debreceni Infrastructure Development Ltd

Project Team:

Sordo Madaleno: Javier Sordo Madaleno Bringas, Javier Sordo Madaleno de Haro, Fernando Sordo Madaleno, Tamara Munoz, Jaime Sol, Carlos Reyes, Rick Liu, Audrey Tseng de Melo Fischer, Juliana Biancardin, Marissa Glauberman, Castana Arango, Ann Dingli, Luis Frausto, Diego Velazquez, Aaron Sanchez

Epitezs Studio: Honich Richard, Szántó Hunor

Buro Happold: Thomas Kirchner, Neil Francis, Tom Headley, Nick Greenwood, Nicholas Trowles

CGI: BsArq

About Sordo Madaleno
Sordo Madaleno is a third-generation Mexican architecture studio, founded in 1937, now working between Mexico City and London. We practice architecture as generosity—shaping spaces where terrain, tradition, and memory thrive together. Our process is rigorous and iterative, guided by deep study rather than fixed style. From hospitality to culture and civic space, we design at human scale with materials that carry meaning, creating environments that feel rooted, welcoming, and generationally enduring.
Recent and ongoing work includes the New Collection Centre for Hungarian Museum of Natural History in Debrecen; Arte Abierto Baja at Ánima Village—a new public art gallery in Los Cabos, Mexico; the Canadian School in Puebla, Mexico; the Atlas Academia Facility in Guadalajara; a commercial zone in Asunción, Paraguay designed as a publicly accessible park; a residential development in Marbella, Spain; and a public park in Riyadh, KSA.