Young Architects Program International

BE YA!, the structure of masks, consist of ribs of timber cut with a cam machine and assembled on-site. The structure is secured to the ground with metal plates and bolts, then paneled on the outside and upholstered on the inside with sprayed soft polyurethane. The position of the elements is in line with the guidelines provided by MAXXI regarding the piercing of the ground at the filling of gravel only. Therefore, the installation may be assembled, disassembled, and used several times, subject to the reconstruction of such parts that are most subject to wear and tear.

The “masks,” influenced by the Italian comedy theater, and in particular by the characters of Ettore Petrolini, are hard on the outside, but soft on the inside; users can lay down, sit, or lean to see a portion of the sky emerging from the museum and the nearby trees. At night, the concavities of the masks look—with an adequate set of lights—like large moons fallen on the Earth; they can also be used as scenic settings for summer events at the museum.