The Naomi Milgrom Foundation has announced that Rem Koolhaas and David Gianotten of OMA will design the 2017 MPavilion in Melbourne- the fourth annual temporary pavilion will be located in Melbourne's Queen Victoria Gardens- in the centre of Melbourne’s Southbank Arts Precinct. 

Commissioned by the Naomi Milgrom Foundation- an organisation set up by businesswoman and philanthropist Naomi Milgrom, MPavilion 2017 will be their first-ever completed Australian architectural commission.

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''Rem Koolhaas is one of the world’s most provocative and influential architects. His contribution to the cultural landscape as an urban thinker together with OMA’s multi-disciplinary approach to architecture reflects MPavilion’s desire to inspire debate about the role of design in building equitable and creative cities,'' commented Naomi Milgrom AO, Chair of the Naomi Milgrom Foundation.

De Rotterdam, Rotterdam, Netherlands. Image © Frans Parthesius, courtesy of OMA

''MPavilion is now a project of international significance and we look forward to contributing to the architectural legacy it has engendered. We are excited by the brief of designing a cultural heart for the city – a space of public engagement that will spark creativity and discussion, and that will act as a theatre for ideas,'' said Rem Koolhaas and David Gianotten in a statement about the commission. 

Faena District, Miami, USA. Image © Iwan Baan, courtesy of OMA

MPavilion will be another addition to OMA’s folio of cultural projects, including Fondazione Prada in Milan, the Garage Museum in Moscow’s Gorky Park, Casa da Musica in Porto, the Seattle Public Library – all which have become important civic centres and independent spaces for the public.

2016 MPavilion was designed by Bijoy Jain of Studio Mumbai and British architecture practice AL_A -led by Amanda Levete designed 2015 MPavilion in for Melbourne.

MPavilion is an event hub, a meeting place and an invitation to experiment, each MPavilion brings creative collaborators together to present a free, four-month program of talks, workshops, performances and installations from October to February.

Top image: David Gianotten and Rem Koolhaas, image © Jane Hobson, courtesy Barbican Art Gallery.

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