![]() But the architect's comment revealed a recurrent concern in the art museum design world: the risk that a new building or renovated space might compete with, or overwhelm, the artwork inside. After all, he was talking about a vertical maze of prints in the middle of the room by the late, great American painter and graphic artist Robert Rauschenberg. It’s the art getting in the way of the real art."īruner’s ribbing was playful. "If you stand here," he directed as we stood in the entryway, "you look at the atrium which draws you through here." Then the architect added, "unfortunately, this exhibit blocks that. As you can imagine updating Building 6 has been architecturally challenging. Its structure is supported by beefy, steel beams and lined with exposed bricks that rise up from warmer, maple flooring.īruner pointed to the line of rough-hewn wooden columns, saying there are 1,000 that don't quite line up. The old mill and factory is irregularly shaped, with a pointed prow, like a ship. Each of Building 6's lengthy, three floors spans an acre. GPS will be available, and useful, according to Bruner, who is the founding principal of the Cambridge firm Bruner/Cott. ![]() "It's pretty daunting to walk through a building of this scale," he mused, "and that's our issue, really, to maintain orientation and create excitement as you discover things around the corner." Before I had the chance to ask about the distance one would have to walk to see all of Building 6 Thompson quantified, "We had an intern go walk the perimeter of every single gallery, as if they were the most diligent museum visitor in the world - missing nothing - and it clocked in at a little over 4 miles."Ĭreating a sense of direction inside this vast structure has been architect Simeon Bruner's job. "Even though it’s doubling our exhibition footprint, I’ll eat my hat if people don’t think that we’ve quadrupled," museum director Joseph Thompson told me as we passed through a stunning installation by artist Nick Cave on our way through Building 5 to MASS MoCA's latest renovation, "because you take these big, long circulation paths through." MASS MoCA director Joseph Thompson in the newly renovated Building 6. Most visitors will pass through mammoth art installations in Building 5 - which is a football field in length - to gain entry to the new Building 6. If you haven’t been to MASS MoCA believe me when I say it really is gigantic. We took a tour to find out more about how this beautiful, big building - and the big works by big-name artists inside - are part of the museum's long-term strategy to boost the local economy. Now, as part of the museum’s ongoing expansion and mission, MASS MoCA’s gallery capacity is doubling with the debut of Building 6 which opens Sunday. Its exhibition girth grew even more in 2008 when the institution renovated what's known as Building 7 to display floors filled with large-scale wall drawings by the late conceptual artist Sol LeWitt. The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art was already pretty darn huge when it opened 18 years ago with 90,000 square feet of exhibition space in a re-purposed, 19th-century mill complex in North Adams. Facebook Email MASS MoCA's latest addition, called Building 6, in North Adams, Massachusetts.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |