DGT Architects have been awarded the Grand Prize 2016 by the French Architects Overseas Organisation (AFEX) for their work on Estonia's new national museum.

The studio will collect the award on 26 May in Venice to coincide with the opening of the city’s 15th architecture biennale.

DGT won an international competition to design the new home for the Estonian National Museum in Tartu by challenging the competition brief. Instead of locating the building on the proposed site, they chose to reappropriate a nearby former Soviet military base to house the museum and reflect Estonia’s history of occupation and fight for independence.

The new 33,880sq m (364,640sq ft) structure has been created as a long, open hall sheltered by an inclined roof, symbolising the country’s future progression. Exhibitions showcase the history of Estonia as a nation and are intended to enhance the region's public life, education, science, leisure activities and tourism.

The AFEX prize is awarded every two years for an outstanding work delivered abroad by a French architect. Thirty-two projects completed between 1 January 2014 and 31 December 2015 were considered this year.

DGT will receive the honour from a representative of France’s culture ministry at UNESCO’s headquarters in the Palazzo Zorzi.

A model of the museum will be exhibited during the biennale at the Baltic Pavilion.