Swiss architects Daniela Kröss and Rainer Köberl have completed a red building "like a small castle" to celebrate the history of wild ibex in the alpine region of Pitztal, Austria.
The Ibex Museum St Leonhard charts the history of a native ibex goat species that became extinct from the area but was successfully reintroduced in the 1950s.
The museum was designed as a four-storey tower with a bridge
Kröss and Köberl wanted to make the building feel like a landmark, so they designed it as a four-storey tower, connected to the hillside by a monumental bridge.
They also chose a red-toned materials palette, comprising pigmented concrete and powder-coated steel, to allow the building to stand out against its green backdrop.
Precast panels of red concrete clad the exterior "Up on a wooded mountainside, you see a reddish building, somehow appearing like a small castle," said Kröss.
"The red/brownish colour puts the building in a harmonious coexistence with the nature surrounding it," she told Dezeen.
The red colour helps the building stand out as a landmark
The Ibex Museum is located in the parish of St Leonhard, next to one of the oldest farmhouses in the valley. It sits on a site that previously housed a barn.
The new building is designed to reference both the wooden farmhouse and the original barn, with a precast concrete facade featuring a texture that resembles timber boards.
The reception is located on the upper ground floor
"When we fi...