Panama City Museum of Contemporary Art Submission

The Museum of Contemporary Art of Panama (MAC) is designed as a public museum for Panama City, combining galleries, an institute, retail, and public urban infrastructure in one project. The site sits between Punta Pacifica, Boca La Caja, and the Multiplaza commercial district, over an existing excavation; rather than fill it in, the design raises the museum above it and reuses the basin below for parking, building services, and stormwater detention. At ground level, planted terraces, shaded walkways, public plazas, and commercial storefronts make the site a public destination, with the galleries elevated above. The stitched logic of the traditional Mola organizes all of these elements, tying the older fabric of Boca La Caja to the newer districts around it.