MULTI-million pound plans to transform Paisley Museum into an international-class destination have pulled off a major coup, with the appointment of award-winning architects behind some of the world's most iconic buildings.

AL_A, who designed the Victoria and Albert Museum Exhibition Road Quarter in London, have been chosen to undertake the £42m project.

The firm's fonder Amanda Levete said the project was 'one of the most radical briefs she had read'.

There will be major revamps to all four museum buildings including the Coats Observatory, while a complete internal redesign will reimagine the visitor experience and double the number of objects on display.

The project will also include a contemporary addition to the existing Victorian-era building, creating a new entrance and museum spaces.

Amanda said: "This is one of the most radical briefs I have read and it triggered in us a desire to tell the untold history of Paisley and search for a narrative thread that will drive the design.

"The project is bigger than the building itself and I am excited to reimagine the relationship between the street and the museum."
The museum will close this autumn and re-open in 2022 as a revitalised home for Paisley's textile heritage and natural history, art and science collections.

It is the flagship project in Renfrewshire Council's planned £100m investment in cultural venues.

AL_A won the prestigious RIBA London Building of the Year award for the Victoria and Albert Museum project and it was also shortlsited for the competition to redesign the visitor experience at the Eiffel Tower.

Cllr Lisa-Marie Hughes, chair of Renfrewshire Leisure , added: “For Paisley to have attracted a design team of such global reputation to come to Scotland for the first time shows we are being noticed around the UK and abroad.

“Being the first ever town on a UK City of Culture shortlist took our profile to new levels – but this appointment also says a lot about the scale and ambition of the museum project, and the worldwide importance of Paisley’s heritage and collections."