Practice beat five others including BIG and SANAA

Foster + Partners has been chosen to design the new extension of the Bilbao Fine Arts Museum in the Basque region of Spain.

Fosters is working with local Basque practice LM Uriarte Arkitektura and beat entries from five other teams led by US-Danish firm BIG, Norwegian practice Snøhetta, Tokyo firm SANAA, and two Spanish architects, Nieto Sobejano Arquitectos and Rafael Moneo.

The firm said the design was focused on keeping the original 1945 building at its centre by restoring its original entrance.

The Bilbao Fine Arts Museum is the practice’s second project in the city, following Bilbao Metro, which was completed in 1995.