Spread over 19,000 sq ft in north Italy, Lumen museum of photography celebrates the history of the towering Dolomites

LUMEN, a museum of mountain photography, was repurposed from a car cable station founded by Kronplatz Seilbahn AG at the Kronplatz summit in the Dolomites in May 1960. Spanning four floors, it offers an opportunity to experience alpine beauty and displays photographic artworks from around the world. Designed by EM2 Architekten with Gerhard Mahlknecht, Stefano D’Elia and Giò Forma, the compact, monolithic building—a horizontal edifice of glass and concrete—juts out over the steep slope, displaying picturesque vistas of the landscape. The inhouse restaurant offers panoramic views and local delicacies, while a circular installation called The Shutter doubles as a projector screen. The exhibitions follow a vertical layout, taking the visitor on a journey through the history of mountain photography. Each year, the venue, which holds up to 200 people, invites photographers to discover and capture their vision of the timeless charm of the Dolomites, a UNESCO world heritage site.