Architect
Frank Gehry is known for his shiny, curvaceous designs like the
Guggenheim in Bilbao, Spain and the
Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. His latest project is decidedly less glamorous but still adds his name to a piece of architectural history. Gehry is working with the
Philadelphia Museum of Art to add an underground wing complete with loading dock and art handling facility. After hiring Gehry in 2006, the Museum has secured his services for a 10-year master plan, which will add underground gallery spaces for the museum's Contemporary American Art and Asian art sections, as well as rotating exhibitions. The project will add 80,000 sq. ft. of space to the historic Philadelphia landmark.
"Some may see this first phase of the project as simply practical, yet it is a critical component to the entire design, which really will transform the museum," says Museum President and COO Gail Harrity.
For architecture buffs, the more important feature of Gehry's design may not come from where he is building but where he is not. The new loading dock and art handling area will return the old loading zone--a vaulted walkway that runs through the length of the museum and has been used for shipping and receiving since the 1970s--to its original purpose as a street-level visitor entrance, adding yet another touchstone to Philadelphia's most famous architectural landmark.
"By creating a new art handling facility, we are not only bringing our museum up to state-of-the-art, best-practice standards, we also free up this historic space that will be reopened and restored as another entrance to the museum," says Harrity.
Source: Gail Harrity, Philadelphia Museum of Art
Writer: John Steele