The temporal collision between past and present allowed us to celebrate change and newness, and to help the institution recast itself as an open and accessible public place and a Museum for the twenty-first century.
James S. Polshek, Design Partner
The glass entry pavilion and new plaza create a revitalized public identity for the Museum and reintegrate the building with its site and neighboring urban context.
Distilling the principles of McKim, Mead & White’s design, the permeable and minimalist hemispherical pavilion acts as a counterpoint to the opacity and symmetry of the original neo-classical structure, radically reinventing accessibility to the Museum both in concept and in practice.
The memory of the original grand entry stair became a formal inspiration for three sets of metaphorical steps: the stepped glass construction of the pavilion roof, the stepped amphitheater facing out toward the fountain and Eastern Parkway, and the terraced lawn sections facing the new pavilion’s glass enclosure.
The pavilion performs the formal and programmatic function once provided by the Grand Staircase, connecting the plaza to the monumental façade, mediating between the horizontal plane of the landscape and the vertical plane of the building, and sponsoring a space of informal public interaction.
