Kunsthaus Zurich is set to be the largest art museum in Switzerland as plans to extend the attraction were approved this week.

The proposed expansion was put to a public vote in Zurich resulting in 53.9 per cent of the city’s residents voting in favour of the project.

The new area will be designed by London-based David Chipperfield Architects and is expected to be completed in 2017.

Dedicated to showcasing art from the 1960s, the extension will also have a focus on French painting and impressionism. New media, video and photography as well as painting, installations and sculptures will be displayed.

Funding came from the private and public sectors, including the Zurich Art Society, which provided CHF88m (£59m, 73m euro) the highest-ever private contribution to an art museum in Switzerland.

Kunsthaus Zurich expects visitor number to increase to 400,000 per year after the extension is opened in 2017.