The competition has now concluded (December 2014) - below is the original call for interest.

We will be looking for multi-disciplinary creative teams with expertise in contemporary design and
landscaping: the museum stands in one of the few green spaces in south Mumbai. The teams
should be structured under a lead consultant identified within the submission. Collaborations with
local practices are encouraged.

This is a key moment for the museum as it reaches out towards new audiences inside India and
internationally. The new facilities will allow a greater diversity of activity and enable events like
travelling international exhibitions to be held which are impossible in the original heritage building.

The new building is expected to be 8,000 to 10,000 m2 (85,000 - 110,000 square feet), providing new
galleries and facilities including an interpretation centre, a library, an archive, conservation facilities
and a new museum shop and caf.

At the heart of the new wing will be a permanent gallery to showcase contemporary Mumbai,
focusing on important milestones in the city's development and highlighting its cultural
achievements, as well as temporary exhibition space to international standards capable of taking
large-scale touring exhibitions.

Project themes:

Using the landscape for events to enhance the work of the Museum

Exemplary, original and contemporary design

Sustainability - to have a Green building conserving energy and water

Reflecting the craft tradition of the Museum

Wider Museum themes:

to serve the community as an institution dedicated to excellence in cultural education

through exhibitions and different visual and intellectual media

to engage the community, especially children

 to promote a greater appreciation of Mumbai's artistic, cultural and economic history and
development

to promote cross cultural understanding and cultural awareness at all levels

The competition has now concluded (December 2014) - below is the original call for
interest.

The Museum was originally established in 1855 as the Government Central Economic
Museum of the Bombay presidency. The oldest museum in Mumbai, it is situated amidst the
lush surroundings of the city's botanical gardens and zoo.

In 1975 the name was changed to the Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum after its eponymous
founder, a polymath who practised as a physician and surgeon, whilst also doing pivotal
research in archaeology and agitating for his countrymen's rights and education. Dr. Lad was
the first native sheriff of Bombay.

The main building's Palladian architecture with high Victorian interiors is unique, not only in
Mumbai but unrivalled in the whole of India. It recently underwent a major renovation, which
won the 2005 UNESCO Asia Pacific Heritage Conservation Award of Excellence, the highest
international award in this field.

The Citation comments, 'The building stands as a unique testimony to the development of
Victorian architecture in the context of the hybrid building and crafts traditions of 19th
Century India, as well as to the civic traditions embodied in one of the country's earliest
museums.'

To find out more about the museum please see: www.bdlmuseum.org

The documents below contain the information available to competitors for the first stage of the
competition. They are provided for use by entrants for their competition submissions only.