The Old Patent Office Building in Washington, D.C., completed in 1867, houses two Smithsonian Institution museums—the National Portrait Gallery and the American Art Museum. Collections include portraits of all U.S. presidents, along with paintings, sculptures, prints, and drawings of numerous historic figures from American history, and the works of more than 7,000 American artists. Following a major renovation, these national treasures, as well as long-hidden architectural features of the 380,000-sf Greek Revival building, can now be viewed in natural light for the first time in decades.
The restoration project Building Team, led by Hartman-Cox Architects, Washington, restored and showcased elements such as the porticos modeled after the Parthenon in Athens, a curving double staircase, colonnades, vaulted galleries, massive windows, and block-long skylights. The effort also restored full visitor access and circulation on all three floors by relocating staff offices to an adjacent building, while opening up 40,000 sf for galleries by removing infill walls and partitions.
The Building Team made extraordinary efforts to use new preservation technologies for restoration of the historic fabric of the building and to re-use historic materials. This included the replacement of the roof with a standing and flat-seam copper exterior. More than 550 windows were replaced, each with an energy shield and UV filter to protect the artworks, while the exterior layer was done in mouth-blown glass, emulating the look of historic glass.
Original marble pavers were salvaged, numbered, restored and reinstalled throughout the building. White oak wood floors consistent with the original design were installed in the remainder of the building.
The project also added several new spaces, two of which are open to visitors—the Lunder Conservation Center and the Luce Foundation Center for American Art. In addition, the Robert and Arlene Kogod Courtyard and the Nan Tucker McEvoy Auditorium, a 346-seat multipurpose space with advanced audio-visual capabilities that was constructed beneath the courtyard, add to the museum's versatility. New monumental stairs and an elevator were added to connect the public entrances at G Street to the auditorium.
A key component of the project was the wholesale replacement of mechanical and electric systems to bring the facility up to current museum standards for lighting and temperature control. As a solid masonry building, however, there was no plenum space in which to place the new systems. The Building Team concealed the M/E components within former ventilation and chimney shafts and under the floors. This set up required modification to the chases to accommodate ductwork and piping. New boilers, chillers, cooling towers, air-handling units, fan coil units, pumps, duct work, and piping were installed so that they would not intrude within the gallery spaces.
Infrastructure modernization included a new telecommunications system with new fiber optic and copper cable, a new fire alarm system (including addressable smoke and heat detectors), and upgrades to the existing fire protection system. A new security system, including glass break and shock sensors, motion detectors, and cameras, will help guard the priceless exhibits.
Restoration of architectural detailing included replacement of worn encaustic and geometric tiles in the Great Hall with handmade, historically accurate, multi-colored replicas produced in England. On the exterior, workers cleaned, patched, and pointed the stone facades.
“The architectural details of the Smithsonian Portrait Gallery restoration were extremely carefully thought out,” said Walker Johnson FAIA, honorary chair of BD+C's Reconstruction Awards program. “The inclusion of mechanical elements within this bearing wall structure is an indication of the length the Building Team went to maintain the original design while still modernizing and restoring the building.”
All told, Hartman-Cox Architects and construction manager Bovis Lend Lease coordinated architects, engineers, and designers from more than one dozen consulting firms representing more than 20 different design disciplines, and prepared four different prime construction contracts for the $283 million renovation. The revitalized building, a major focus of a revitalized downtown Washington, is once again a showpiece for the nation's capital.
Related Stories
| Nov 16, 2010
Brazil Olympics spurring green construction
Brazil's green building industry will expand in the coming years, spurred by construction of low-impact venues being built for the 2016 Olympics. The International Olympic Committee requires arenas built for the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro meet international standards for low-carbon emissions and energy efficiency. This has boosted local interest in developing real estate with lower environmental impact than existing buildings. The timing couldn’t be better: the Brazilian government is just beginning its long-term infrastructure expansion program.
| Nov 10, 2010
$700 million plan to restore the National Mall
The National Mall—known as America’s front yard—is being targeted for a massive rehab and restoration that could cost as much as $700 million (it’s estimated that the Mall has $400 million in deferred maintenance alone). A few of the proposed projects: refurbishing the Grant Memorial, replacing the Capitol Reflecting Pool with a smaller pool or fountain, reconstructing the Constitution Gardens lake and constructing a multipurpose visitor center, and replacing the Sylvan Theater near the Washington Monument with a new multipurpose facility.
| Nov 9, 2010
Designing a library? Don’t focus on books
How do you design a library when print books are no longer its core business? Turn them into massive study halls. That’s what designers did at the University of Amsterdam, where they transformed the existing 27,000-sf library into a study center—without any visible books. About 2,000 students visit the facility daily and encounter workspaces instead of stacks.
| Nov 3, 2010
Park’s green education center a lesson in sustainability
The new Cantigny Outdoor Education Center, located within the 500-acre Cantigny Park in Wheaton, Ill., earned LEED Silver. Designed by DLA Architects, the 3,100-sf multipurpose center will serve patrons of the park’s golf courses, museums, and display garden, one of the largest such gardens in the Midwest.
| Nov 3, 2010
Sailing center sets course for energy efficiency, sustainability
The Milwaukee (Wis.) Community Sailing Center’s new facility on Lake Michigan counts a geothermal heating and cooling system among its sustainable features. The facility was designed for the nonprofit instructional sailing organization with energy efficiency and low operating costs in mind.
| Nov 3, 2010
New church in Connecticut will serve a growing congregation
Tocci Building Companies will start digging next June for the Black Rock Congregational Church in Fairfield, Conn. Designed by Wiles Architects, the 103,000-sf multiuse facility will feature a 900-person worship center with tiered stadium seating, a children’s worship center, a chapel, an auditorium, a gymnasium, educational space, administrative offices, commercial kitchen, and a welcome center with library and lounge.
| Nov 2, 2010
Cypress Siding Helps Nature Center Look its Part
The Trinity River Audubon Center, which sits within a 6,000-acre forest just outside Dallas, utilizes sustainable materials that help the $12.5 million nature center fit its wooded setting and put it on a path to earning LEED Gold.
| Oct 13, 2010
Editorial
The AEC industry shares a widespread obsession with the new. New is fresh. New is youthful. New is cool. But “old” or “slightly used” can be financially profitable and professionally rewarding, too.
| Oct 13, 2010
Biloxi’s convention center bigger, better after Katrina
The Mississippi Coast Coliseum and Convention Center in Biloxi is once again open for business following a renovation and expansion necessitated by Hurricane Katrina.
| Oct 13, 2010
Tower commemorates Lewis & Clark’s historic expedition
The $4.8 million Lewis and Clark Confluence Tower in Hartford, Ill., commemorates explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark at the point where their trek to the Pacific Ocean began—the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers.