Glass Elevator in St Nicholas' Church Glass Elevator in St Nicholas' Church

Glass Elevator in St Nicholas' Church

Reconstruction and exhibition of the St Nicholas church tower with glas lift

The long history of the St. Nicholas Church probably began in the 13th century, and the church was first mentioned in 1315. Along with the long and complicated history, there are many additions, demolitions and expansions. Gradually rising, St. Nicholas Church reached its final height in 1695. After being destroyed in the war, the church was restored as a museum-concert hall, which was completed in 1984.

The tower of the dignified church has been closed to visitors for a long time. The tower has been used as a service passage and through it the path leads to many attics and balconies of the church. However, time has done its job and the tower no longer offers protection from the weather.
The goal of the St. Nicholas Church tower project was to restore the former glory of the tower and move the St. Nicholas Church museum to several floors. As a significant innovation, a modern elevator has also been built into the medieval tower.

Client
Estonian Art Museum, Niguliste Museum
Invited architecture competition
2020, 1. plaze
Completed:
2023
Architects:
Raivo Kotov, Andrus Kõresaar, Indrek Mikk
Interior architecture and exhibition design:
Liis Lindvere
Construction:
Tarrest LT
Lift in higher tower floor. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel Lift in higher tower floor. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel
Lift in higher tower floor. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel

Working with historical buildings always creates a special mood for the projects, but also leads to complex heritage conservation and historical-technical restrictions. So you often have to deal with a situation where you need to create something truly new inside an old shell, while at the same time preserving the building's timeless character.

An important part of the concept of the St. Nicholas Church tower project was that everything added would be light and transparent, still focusing on historical values. This principle was extended, for example, to the choice of materials and became a guide in the design of a special elevator shaft.

Another major update is in the mezzanine of the small chapel, where the goal was to maintain a clean space for the exhibition hall and to avoid the creation of posts and unwieldy support structure. The cables and fixtures of the lights were inserted into the floor structure. Thus, the result is a truly clean room, where there are no inappropriate modern constructions and technology.

Drone view to old town. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel Drone view to old town. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel
Drone view to old town. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel
View of the lift. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel View of the lift. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel
View of the lift. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel
Exhibition of church bells. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel Exhibition of church bells. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel
Exhibition of church bells. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel
New terrace in the church hall. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel New terrace in the church hall. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel
New terrace in the church hall. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel
3D section 3D section
3D section
Ground and tower floor plans Ground and tower floor plans
Ground and tower floor plans
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