War museum unveils plans by Libeskind

The Imperial War Museum has unveiled plans for its proposed 35m northern branch, scheduled to open in 2002 at Trafford Wharfside in Greater Manchester.

If successful in its funding applications to the Heritage Lottery Fund and regional European boards, the new branch will be housed in a distinctive building created by architect Daniel Libeskind. Based on the concept of a shattered globe, the structure features jagged shard shapes. The tallest section will be used as a projection site at night.

Building design group DEGW is collaborating with Studio Libeskind on the interiors and exhibition space at the museum. “We are very much at the masterplanning stage,” says DEGW associate director Stephen Greenberg. “We will be building on the scrambled pre-knowledge of visitors (on the wars since WW1),” he says of the museum.