Project name: Albanian Restoration and Museum
Location: Tirana, Albania
Client: Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Albania
Scope: Renovation, New Build, Architecture, Landscape, Exhibition Design
Architect: Oppenheim Architecture
Museum Designer: Ralph Appelbaum Associates
Branding Specialist: The Place Bureau
Local Architect: Common Sense Studio
Site Area: 26,791.37 sq. ft
Building Area: 17,889 sq. ft
New Build Area:4,693 sq.ft
Competitin on Year: 2023
לאחר תחרות דו-שלבית עם למעלה מ-40 מועמדים, החברה הבינלאומית המובילה Oppenheim Architecture זכתה בחוזה למוזיאון Besa, מוסד התרבות החדש ביותר באלבניה. המשרד האירופי של אופנהיים, שבסיסו בבאזל, שוויץ, עובד על מערך מגוון של פרויקטים באלבניה, החל ממסחר ורב משפחתי ועד לאירוח, כבר למעלה משנתיים. מוזיאון Besa מייצג את אחד היוקרתיים ביותר שלו עד כה, ומכבד את המורשת התרבותית העשירה והרוח מסבירת הפנים של המדינה. עם העבודה המוסדית האחרונה הזו, אופנהיים אדריכלות מבלטת את מקומה כדרך לחברה המגדירה מחדש את הנוף האדריכלי של אלבניה.
'We are honored to represent Albania through the Besa Museum,” states Director of Oppenheim Architecture Europe Beat Huesler. “Since beginning our work in Albania a few years ago, we have been inspired by the culture and vibrancy of its people. We hope that our vision for the Besa Museum will use architecture as a tool to illustrate the Albanian people’s deep love and respect for their heritage and one another. this is what makes the country so dynamic. Our thanks to the jury and competition team for trusting us with this most important project.”
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
Oppenheim Architecture’s first step in the design process was to engage with local experts including Albanologists, restoration experts, historians specializing in Ottoman and Albanian architecture and culture, and a museologist. The firm collaborated with revered institutional specialty firm Ralph Applebaum Associates to ensure that they were able to properly meet the unique requirements of a museum such as this. From there, the team imagined how an abstract concept such as Besa could be transformed into a concrete work of architecture.
Besa Museum takes its name from the Albanian concept of “Besa,” a sacred principle that represents the given word, or one’s honor to host and protect any guest and welcome them as one of your own, and demonstrates the core of the Albanian way. Through research, the firm interpreted four pillars tradition, protection, hospitality, and honor that are deeply ingrained in the Albanian identity and reflect an intense cultural prestige. Oppenheim Architecture’s concept for the museum seeks to capture this feeling, using architecture as a vehicle to explore examples of the country’s own moments of Besa.
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
The Ministry of Culture of Albania chose the site of the museum, located in the Toptani Residence in Albania’s lively capital city, Tirana, which showcased it as a historical monument that is meant to be preserved and respected. The Toptani Residence itself is a critical part of Albanian history, named for one of the country’s most historic families. Adds Huesler, “We want to leverage the power of the existing house,having it as a site of exhibits and a n exhibit itself.” The spaces serve as testimonies to the Albanian way of life, with the Oppenheim team proposing a restoration of the rooms and art in order to highlight historical and current events during which Besa has guided Albania; notably, welcoming of Jews during the Holocaust, as well as Kosovar and Afghan refugees in contemporary times. The museum experience itself is divided into two parts, one above ground located inside the existing residence, taking the guests through a journey of understanding Besa historically and culturally. The second is underground where visitors are immersed in the experience of Besa for a fully interactive experience of the concept.
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
 
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
The most notable addition to the property will be the bright red modern monoliths located in the courtyard that is meant to draw visitors in from the surrounding city. The towers will connect to a new wing built under the exterior courtyard and will in essence be beacons of light that reflect down into the below ground wing and use the effects of natural light and shadow to further accent the impressive exhibits. Connected through the Toptani Residence through an underground passage, the wing mirrors the organization of the original Ottoman structure with rooms organized around a central space called an Oda. The above ground sculptural elements will also announce the presence of the museum to the greater city of Tirana, adding a minimal yet impactful new feature to the city’s historic skyline.
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
 Photo Credit: Oppenheim Architecture
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למרות הכל: ענף האדריכלות והעיצוב בתנועה
רענון אביבי לבית: מבצעים והשקות לפסח
מול הכנרת: בית שמרגיש כמו חופשה - אדריכלות ועיצוב: סטודיו 'רות ולבנה' 
צבע כאמירה של שמחה: השפה האופטימית של סטודיו טולה
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קולקציות 2026 אביב
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הגוונים החדשים באקריל - בלורן
מלון בוטיק פרטי: דירה בראשון לציון שעוצבה כפרק חיים חדש - מעצבת פנים שני חיוט
לא רק עיצוב - יצירה מחדש של בית - מעצבת פנים גלית ששון 
הצד השמח של העיצוב: הבחירות שעושות חג בבית
אהבה על שרטוטים: כשהשיפוץ הופך למבחן הזוגיות
הוא רצה מודרני. היא חלמה כפרי. והמעצבות? מצאו דרך שלישית 
עולם המטבחים: כל מה שרצית לדעת
ט״ו בשבט בבית – אדריכלות ועיצוב כדרך חיים המחוברת לטבע
