National Palace Museum

Welcoming the next century of the National Palace Museum, the NPM holds a briefing on the restoration and reuse of Historic Buildings

On March 1st and 2nd, the National Palace Museum held a briefing at the Northern Branch on the restoration and reuse of Historic Buildings. The first briefing session was led by NPM deputy director Yung-tai Huang with representatives from the NPM team, the Fei & Cheng Associates (architectural firm), Sinotech Engineering Consultants, Ltd. (project management), and Ma Kangjun Architectural Firm (project leader). They explained to the public the plans for the structural reinforcement and seismic safety of the National Palace Museum’s main building, the construction of a new entrance pavilion to improve entrance traffic flow, and the optimization of the traffic flow of the exhibition space. In order to further improve the plan, they communicated face-to-face with the public on-site and collected valuable opinions from all sectors.

The National Palace Museum stated that the Main Building of the Northern Branch was opened in 1965 and has been in operation for over half a century. The existing buildings, some pipelines, and equipment facilities have long been out of date, and the water leakage situation of the building’s roof is becoming increasingly serious. In order to maintain the safety of both artifacts and visitors, the Executive Yuan approved the "New National Palace Museum Project : Northern Branch Refurbishment (Expansion) Plan" in 2017, which includes the restoration, reinforcement, and replacement of the Main Building. On October 26, 2020, the Department of Cultural Affairs of Taipei City announced the registration of the "National Palace Museum" (including the Main Building, Huabiao Avenue, and the Archway) as a "Historic Buildings". According to Article 13 of the "Regulations for the Restoration and Reuse of Monuments", the National Palace Museum submitted the restoration and reuse plan to the Department of Cultural Affairs for review. After reviewed by the Department of Cultural Affairs, it needed to be revised and then reviewed again.

In response to the review comments and amendments of the Taipei City Department of Cultural Affairs and concerns from the public about the structural safety of the Main Building’s interior, the design of the Octagonal Atrium, the impact of the new entrance pavilion and the outward appearance, and the planning of the Sanxitang, the National Palace Museum made the following explanations:

1. The structural safety of the Main Building’s interior: The "New National Palace Museum Project : Northern Branch Refurbishment (Expansion) Plan" under the New National Palace Museum Plan is designed by architects and structural technicians. After being reviewed by the structural technicians of a professional consulting company, a third-party review was also carried out by the Taipei Professional civil Engineers Association. The association stated that the construction methods complied with engineering practices and that part of the floor slabs will be turned into skylights, high-ceilinged exhibition halls and etc., which should have no impact on the overall structure of the main hall.
2. Press photos are Octagonal Atrium Design: The existing high-ceiling space of the bright-red staircase in the center of the Main Building will be renovated without demolishing the existing structure. After the restoration, the beam and floor structure will be reinforced to improve structural safety.
3. The impact of adding a new entrance and its impact on the outward appearance: In order to improve the current entrance traffic flow, public service space and front entrance gates will be added.  In the revised proposal, the roof had been lower and reduce in size, so that its height and width do not obscure the classical decorative elements of the facade of the Main Building. With reference to the yellow walls and green tiles of the existing buildings, gray, yellow, green and other color systems have been proposed as options, and the planning is based on the principle of adaptability to reduce the impact on the historical building itself.
4. The planning of the Sanxitang: Only internal restorations will be made in order to retain the original appearance as much as possible, preserving the memories of domestic and foreign visitors who have visited the National Palace Museum.

The second briefing of the NPM’s restoration and reuse plan was held on March 2nd at 6:30pm in the B1 Multimedia Auditorium of the Main Building of the Northern Branch. All people were welcomed to come and attend. The NPM added that the recording of the two briefings will be integrated into the restoration and reuse plan and submitted to the Taipei City Department of Cultural Affairs for further review.The National Palace Museum looks forward to continuing to build consensus with people from all fields, smoothly promoting the restoration plan of the Northern Branch, optimizing the environment for preserving artifacts, and providing an excellent visiting experience to usher in the next century of the National Palace Museum.

National Palace Museum Press Contact
Ruiyu Zhang　02-2881-2021#68991　Email: ruiyu42174@npm.gov.tw
Wanyu Yang　02-2881-2021#68900　Email: yuyang@npm.gov.tw