Dominique Perrault Designing Giacometti Museum & School

Announced this week, the Fondation Giacometti says the 6,000 m² Giacometti Museum & School "will reinvent the concept of an artist's foundation and will be dedicated to fostering dialogues between the public, the artists, and the different modes of creative expression."

Dominique Perrault has been selected to transform the building and its underground annexes, which were created for the 1900 World Fair and most recently was used an event venue. Perrault, based in Paris, will work with heritage architect Pierre-Antoine Gatier and landscape architect Louis Benech.

Although details on Perrault's design are not available now, the announcement indicates that "the architecture of the building, which is bathed in natural light, will offer an exceptional environment for the presentation of the works." Hundreds of Giacometti artworks, including plaster and bronze sculptures, paintings, drawings, and decorative art objects will be on display permanently in the museum. The Fondation Giacometti's collection comprises nearly 10,000 works.

The galleries will also host temporary exhibitions featuring other modern and contemporary artists. The project will also consist of the Alberto Giacometti's studio, the Fondation Giacommeti archives, its library, and its picture library, all of which will be accessible to the public. The school, named the School of Creation for All, will "provide an original approach to art, based on the spirit of the studio and creativity, transcending the barriers between fine arts, applied arts, crafts, and professional and amateur practice," per the announcement.

The transformation of Gare des Invalides into the Giacometti Museum & School won't be the first train station-to-museum project in France's capital. Nearby is the Musée d'Orsay, which opened in 1986 in the former Gare d'Orsay. That transformation was led by Italian architect Gae Aulenti, who inserted arranged galleries along a central nave below the soaring glass roof. It became her most famous and lasting work.