Bjarke Ingels’ firm BIG has revealed designs for the Smithsonian Institution’s 10- to 20-year renovation project of the south mall campus in Washington, D.C.
“The centerpiece of the proposed South Mall Master Plan is the revitalization of the iconic Smithsonian castle,” the firm said in a statement.
More than 150 years old, the castle serves as a visitor information center and the headquarters of the institution. The plan calls for bringing back the castle’s original great hall, which has been altered many times with partitions in the course of its existence.
The plan will also bring more cohesion between the museums and offer generous amounts of retail, cafe, and public gathering spaces.
The plan affects museums and gardens along Independence Avenue S.W. from 7th to 12th streets and will include an expanded visitor services center, new mall-facing entrances to the National Museum of African Art and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, as well as improved visibility and access from the Freer Gallery of Art to the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden.
“The Master Plan provides the first-ever integrative vision for the South Mall,” said Wayne Clough, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution in a statement. “Bjarke Ingels Group has given us a plan that will offer open vistas, connected museums, galleries bathed in daylight, new performance venues, gardens that invite people into them, and it will visually attract visitors who will have an unparalleled experience.”
“It’s a great honor and a humbling challenge to reimagine one of the most significant American institutions on the front lawn of the nation’s capital,” said Bjarke Ingels, the founding partner at BIG and the architect of the master plan. “Together with the Smithsonian—with whom we have worked closely over the last year and a half—we have conceived a Master Plan for the south mall campus as an example of radical reinterpretation.
"To resolve the contradictions between old and new, and to find freedom within the boundaries of strict regulation and historical preservation, we have chosen to carefully reinterpret the elements that are already present in the campus," said Ingels. "By forging new links between the various technical, programmatic, logistical and curatorial demands, we have created a new landscape of connectivity and possibility. We believe this plan holds the potential to guide the Smithsonian South Mall Campus into the future while remaining firmly rooted in its heritage.”
More information at designboom.
Related Stories
| Apr 9, 2014
5 important trends shaping today’s hotel construction market
AEC firms, developers, and investors worldwide are bullish on hotels. Our hospitality Giants share what’s new in this fast-morphing sector.
| Apr 9, 2014
Steel decks: 11 tips for their proper use | BD+C
Building Teams have been using steel decks with proven success for 75 years. Building Design+Construction consulted with technical experts from the Steel Deck Institute and the deck manufacturing industry for their advice on how best to use steel decking.
| Apr 8, 2014
Gehry, Foster unveil plans for Battersea Power Station redevelopment [slideshow]
Phase 3 of the massive redevelopment of the London landmark will include more than 1,300 residential units, a 160-room hotel, and 350,000 sf of retail space.
| Apr 8, 2014
Fire resistive curtain wall helps The Kensington meet property line requirements
The majority of fire rated glazing applications occur inside a building to allow occupants to exit the building safely or provide an area of refuge during a fire. But what happens when the threat of fire comes from the outside? This was the case for The Kensington, a mixed-use residential building in Boston.
| Apr 8, 2014
First look: Zaha Hadid reveals design for dreamy sculptural hotel
Hadid's design, which will become the fifth hotel tower in the City of Dreams entertainment hub in Macau, features a latticed exoskeleton enveloping the building's exterior.
| Apr 8, 2014
Understanding value billing vs. conventional billing
Every company is a sum of the value it delivers to its clients. What differs from one company to the next is how that value is delivered and perceived. All too often, it is based solely on the fee you charge.
| Apr 8, 2014
Science, engineering find common ground on the Northeastern University campus [slideshow]
The new Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building is designed to maximize potential of serendipitous meetings between researchers.
| Apr 8, 2014
40 Under 40 winners: Meet the contractors
Of the up-and-coming AEC professionals to be named to the class of 2014, nine make their living as contractors.
| Apr 7, 2014
40 Under 40 winners: Meet the architects
Of the up-and-coming AEC professionals to be named 40 Under 40 winners by the editors of Building Design+Construction, 21 make their living in the architecture profession.
| Apr 4, 2014
$25 million Orion Jet Center designed by SchenkelShultz now open
As the centerpiece of the 45-acre campus, which is its first phase of a planned 215-acre mixed-use development, the 18,000 square foot executive terminal facility offers spacious passenger areas, administrative space, an executive suite, rental car kiosk, catering and a cafe.
