Herzog & de Meuron partner quits to set up own practice

Tate Modern extension to continue under different project leader

By Jason Edward Kaufman | Web only
Published online 21 Sep 09 (Museums)

New york. Harry Gugger, the partner with the Swiss architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron who managed the conversion of the Bankside Power Station into Tate Modern, will leave the company at the end of 2009 to set up an independent practice.

Gugger spent 19 years at the firm, overseeing projects including the Schaulager in Basel, Kunsthaus Aarau and the Kolkata Museum of Modern Art. His involvement with Tate, which opened in 2000, began in 1995. According to a museum spokeswoman, “he was central to the realisation of Tate Modern and was a key figure in the subsequent architectural developments at the gallery”. She says Tate will continue to work with Herzog & de Meuron on the planned extension of Tate Modern, revised plans for which were granted planning permission on 31 March 2009. “We remain fully committed to the project and aim to complete the new building in 2012,” she says, adding that the project is estimated to cost “£215m at 2012 prices”. Gugger says that Ascan Mergenthaler will now be the partner in charge, and he intends to work with her until the end of the year. He also plans to continue to teach at his alma mater, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich.