Lift Report

The focus of this report lies on the Pinakothek der Moderne. A building defined by its architecture, where the lift engineering and lift design attract particular attention – and that in two very different respects. Two entirely different lift systems each serving its own unique purpose await visitors:

First of all, two spectacular paternoster lifts that present the design objects in the Neue Sammlung – The International Design Museum Munich.

Secondly, a passenger lift for visitors to the museum, which captivates with its intriguing design and extraordinary visual perspectives.

Are they compatible? This is the first thing that comes to mind considering that the paternoster lift tends to be viewed more as a historical lift system, which is no longer in use today, and that for good reason.

The first paternoster lift was installed in London in 1883. Since 1974, no new “continuous passenger lifts” may be commissioned, only a small number of systems are still operated in Europe for nostalgic reasons and in accordance with technical requirements.

Despite constant availability for trips in both directions and the elimination of waits, the system‘s drawbacks outweigh its benefits: The risk of accident when entering and leaving the lift, noise generation of the transmission chain mechanics, the negative energy rating and the reduced fire prevention safety. When compared to modern lift systems, the paternoster no longer keeps with the times when it comes to conveying passengers.

Modern industrial paternosters are more widespread as carousel systems in different designs up to including multi-lift systems. In plant warehouses, they make it possible to quickly access warehouse goods and are also capable of transporting extremely heavy goods.

The principle of the industrial paternoster was the model for the two installations in the Neue Sammlung in the Pinakothek der Moderne. The two paternosters, each eight metres in height, in the design of the permanent exhibition design are an exceedingly popular highlight of the exhibition. The exhibits from the fields of industrial design and applied art noiselessly and smoothly glide by the marveling gaze of visitors. In this way, one of the two paternosters also presents the ornate objects from the exhibition for styleconscious cooks and diners “Oggettie Progetti.Alessi” in motion instead of in a stationary cabinet arrangement. Not only the visitors, but museum experts from all over the world are enraptured by the idea and design of the systems. The latter comes from the Swiss company System Schultheiss AG and as such, is not far removed from the thought of Swiss precious clockworks.

Visitors to the museum who prefer an easier alternative to the escalators when it comes to accessing the different exhibitions or persons in a wheelchair have the option of using the passenger lift located on the edge of the building‘s large central rotunda. In an art museum with such sophisticated architecture as the Pinakothek der Moderne, the lift itself almost has to pass as a designer object. The planners of the Thyssen system with a carrying capacity of 1800 kg (24 persons) succeeded with an unusual solution:

The enclosed, walled-in lift with solid “opaque” lift doors first attracts almost no attention and is subtly integrated in the rotunda‘s architecture extending up to the light dome. However, upon entering the elegant glass cabin, where one again encounters the design characteristics of the building including the labels applied in minimalist appearance, one‘s gaze then shifts upward. The main attraction is embodied by the open cabin and absent ceiling, which offers the passenger a view into the entire lift shaft, thereby giving the trip its own unique dynamic. The bottom of the shaft head with the drive unit is completely clad in stainless steel that is only interrupted by the opening for the eight central cables of the cable lift. Only a narrow steal crossbeam connected with the cables spans the open cabin.

In consideration of these two lift systems and designs, one can very well speak of a symbiosis between lift engineering and art or design. These systems are without a doubt both technically intriguing and visually captivating. This attraction will surely inspire the art-conscious lift technician during a visit to the Pinakothek der Moderne not to mention the enjoyment of art per se. As if anyone would claim that lift building is not art!

Finally, it should be added that the Pinakothek der Moderne also offers another barrier-free lift, especially for persons in a wheelchair, which is operated by the museum personnel if needed.

There are of course also lift systems featuring interesting designs in other German museums e.g. the passenger and freight elevators with bronze Meiller doors in the Neues Museum Berlin (state collection of Egyptian art / Nofretete) from ATB Aufzugtechnik Berlin or the free-standing, three-sided lift from Berchtenbreiter GmbH Rieblingen in the Ulmer Museum.

The Pinakothek der Moderne is one of the world‘s largest museums for fi ne art of the 20th and 21st century. Its dimensions are comparable to those of the Centre Pompidou in Paris or the Tate Modern in London. The building by Stephan Braunfels, which was opened in September 2002, is characterized by open, liberal architecture that creates connections and continues to give visitors new and surprising insights.

Four independent institutions cooperate under one roof in the Pinakothek der Moderne: The Sammlung Moderne Kunst of the Bayerischen Staatsgemäldesammlungen, Die Neue Sammlung – The International Design Museum, Munich, the Architekturmuseum of the Technical University Munich and the Staatliche Graphische Sammlung. The interdisciplinary alignment of the Pinakothek der Moderne upholds the identity of the individual collections while simultaneously presenting them as interwoven parts under a greater cultural context.

The exhibition rooms of the Architekturmuseum of the TU Munich and the Graphische Sammlung are located on the main floor. The Sammlung Moderne Kunst occupies the entire first level with main works of the Classic Modernism by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Max Beckmann and Pablo Picasso as well as work complexes by Andy Warhol, Joseph Beuys, Donald Judd, Dan Flavin and Gerhard Richter. Contemporary art and photography are just as present not to mention Classical Modernism featuring the expressionists, cubists and futurists. The Neue Sammlung presents design objects on the two underground levels: Products from industrial culture and applied art as well as automobile design, computer culture and contemporary jewellery.