The Aquarium of the Pacific’s new Pacific Visions wing has a façade made of 800 light-diffusing glass panels that changes colors throughout the day. The panels, which total 18,000 sf, also act as a ventilated rain screen.
Best yet, the smooth contours make it so that when light hits it just right, the new aquarium wing looks like a whale.
San Francisco architecture firm EHDD designed the addition to the Long Beach, Calif., aquarium. Pacific Visions, which will open in late 2018, will have a 300-seat theater with a 130-by-32-foot-tall screen, curved in a 180 degree arc. The theater will hold performances, panel discussions, community meetings, and educational seminars.
The wing will have a spacious front plaza that doubles as a community gathering space; a 6,000-sf changing exhibit gallery that has live animals and interactive displays; and an art gallery and orientation gallery.
The project cost $53 million and is the second and final phase of the Aquarium of the Pacific’s Campus Master Plan, which was adopted in 2005. The new wing will bring the aquarium’s audience capacity to more than 2 million per year.
“Pacific Visions represents an unprecedented opportunity to help our growing audience examine the vital and changing relationship between humans and the World Ocean and choose paths to make that relationship sustainable,” Dr. Jerry R. Schubel, Aquarium of the Pacific president & CEO, said in a statement. “We want our visitors to leave Pacific Visions feeling more deeply engaged with the living ocean, knowledgeable about the challenges that face it and us, and empowered to make better decisions and share their new understanding with others.”
Related Stories
Museums | Apr 23, 2015
Moshe Safdie unveils pentagonal scheme for National Medal of Honor Museum
The new museum near Charleston, S.C., will archive the history of the nation's highest military honorees.
Museums | Apr 22, 2015
Check out Ralph Johnson's stunning nature-inspired Shanghai museum
The newly opened Shanghai Natural History Museum, designed by Perkins+Will’s Global Design Director Ralph Johnson, mimics the shape of a nautilus shell, and features natural elements throughout.
Museums | Apr 16, 2015
SANAA and Snøhetta tie at first place for Budapest museum bid
The two firms submitted designs for the New National Gallery and Ludwig Museum, one of five planned museums to be constructed in a park just outside the urban center of Hungary’s capital.
Sponsored | Fire-Rated Products | Apr 14, 2015
Fire resistive curtain wall brings maximum light, views and safety to Aspen Art Museum
The curtain wall used for the Shigeru Ban-designed museum provides maximum daylight while protecting the art from fire
Museums | Apr 10, 2015
Henning Larsen Architects designs timber museum extension in Sweden
The new extension will complement Österund’s wooded surroundings
Building Team Awards | Apr 10, 2015
14 projects that push AEC teaming to the limits
From Lean construction to tri-party IPD to advanced BIM/VDC coordination, these 14 Building Teams demonstrate the power of collaboration in delivering award-winning buildings. These are the 2015 Building Team Award winners.
Building Team Awards | Apr 9, 2015
9/11 museum triumphs over controversy
The Building Team for this highly visible project had much more than design, engineering, and construction problems to deal with.
High-rise Construction | Mar 16, 2015
Mexican Museum tower caught in turmoil to break ground this summer in San Francisco
Millennium Partners said it will break ground on the 53-story residential and museum tower while the lawsuits go through the appeals process.
Museums | Mar 9, 2015
Architecture based on astronomy principles for new planetarium in Shanghai
The ancient Chinese civilization left some of the earliest records of humans studying the stars and skies. To exhibit this long history, a new planetarium and astronomy museum is planned for construction in Shanghai.
Museums | Mar 5, 2015
A giant, silver loop in Dubai will house the Museum of the Future
The Sheikh of Dubai hopes the $136 million museum will serve as an incubator for ideas and real designs—a global destination for inventors and entrepreneurs.