
The recently announced Batulao Artscapes, located at the foot of the Philippines’ Mount Batulao, will be home to four themed museums designed by four different architects, all of whom are Pritzker Prize laureates:
There’s the Revolution Museum for Design and Architecture by Christian de Portzamparc (who designed Cité de la Musique in Paris), the Revolution Museum for Visual Arts by Jean Nouvel (who designed the Louvre Abu Dhabi), the Revolution Museum for Art and Technology by US-based Philip Johnson/Alan Ritchie Architects, and the Revolution Museum for Performing Arts by Japan's Tange Associates.
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Robbie Antonio, an avid art collector and founder and CEO of Revolution Pre-crafted—a start-up for prefabricated designer homes—is the mastermind behind the US$1.1 billion project, which he calls "the world’s first live-in art park".
“For Batulao Artscapes, I was inspired by Naoshima which, in my opinion, is one of the most remarkable art and architecture destinations in the world,” he says, referring to the island in Japan known for its contemporary art museums, mostly designed by another Pritzker Prize-winning architect, Tadao Ando.
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Antonio adds: “There’s also Inhotim in Brazil (a public contemporary art park within a 5,000-acre jungle). These spots around the world have become cultural meccas, so I thought, what if we could create a similar project, but this time, giving people the option to live there? Batulao Artscapes is a place where you can enjoy the cool mountain air in your prefabricated weekend home, and see world-class art in a Jean Nouvel museum without having to go to the Louvre Abu Dhabi.”
Another major attraction of Batulao Artscapes is its residential offerings. Those looking for chic weekend retreats or retirement properties can consider prefab designer homes by Berlin’s Studio Libeskind, French-Brazilian architect Elizabeth de Portzamparc, Pelli Clarke Pelli, LA-based Marmol Radziner, style icon Daphne Guinness and even rock star Lenny Kravitz. Plans also include sports facilities, a floating chapel, and a man-made lake and beach.