The Milwaukee Art Museum opened a new lakefront atrium in November, adjacent to Santiago Calatrava’s bird-like Quadracci Pavilion. The two-story addition is situated on the east side of the building, right along Lake Michigan.
The museum provides some great views, and that’s not counting the thousands of works of art that are stored there. Inside, visitors can look through the full-height, low-iron glass windows to see the lake.
Passersby outside can see an array of warm colors as the sun reflects off the building’s second story, which is wrapped in bands of stainless steel that were washed in a chemical bath and pressed with shark-skin texture.
The building has a rooftop plaza and a green roof, which has walking paths. On the inside, more gallery space has been included to show photography, media arts, and design displays. The walls are white and the concrete floors are polished, which gives the building a clean feeling.
The $34 million addition was built after six years of planning and 14 months of construction. The Milwaukee Art Museum was built in 1955, and previous additions were made in 1975 and 2001. The project’s architect was HGA Architects and Engineers, and Hunzinger Construction handled the construction.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has more.
Related Stories
Architects | Feb 27, 2015
5 finalists announced for 2015 Mies van der Rohe Award
Bjarke Ingels' Danish Maritime Museum and the Ravensburg Art Museum by Lederer Ragnarsdóttir Oei are among the five projects vying for the award.
Museums | Feb 18, 2015
Foster + Partners' National Museum of Marine Science and Technology breaks ground in Taiwan
The museum will be home to an aquarium, exhibition space, and waterfront views.
Museums | Feb 17, 2015
Light will shimmer through roof cutouts in Jean Nouvel’s Louvre Abu Dhabi
After many delays since construction started in 2009, the Jean Nouvel-designed Louvre Abu Dhabi is slated for completion sometime this year.
Architects | Feb 11, 2015
Shortlist for 2015 Mies van der Rohe Award announced
Copenhagen, Berlin, and Rotterdam are the cities where most of the shortlisted works have been built.
Museums | Feb 9, 2015
Herzog & de Meuron's M+ museum begins construction in Hong Kong
When completed, M+ will be one of the first buildings in the Foster + Partners-planned West Kowloon Cultural District.
Museums | Feb 6, 2015
Tacoma Art Museum's new wing features sun screens that operate like railroad box car doors
The 16-foot-tall screens, operated by a hand wheel, roll like box car doors across the façade and interlace with a set of fixed screens.
| Jan 19, 2015
HAO unveils designs for a 3D movie museum in China
New York-based HAO has released designs for the proposed Bolong 3D Movie Museum & Mediatek in Tianjin.
| Jan 13, 2015
Steven Holl unveils design for $450 million redevelopment of Houston's Museum of Fine Arts
Holl designed the campus’ north side to be a pedestrian-centered cultural hub on a lively landscape with ample underground parking.
| Jan 2, 2015
Construction put in place enjoyed healthy gains in 2014
Construction consultant FMI foresees—with some caveats—continuing growth in the office, lodging, and manufacturing sectors. But funding uncertainties raise red flags in education and healthcare.
| Dec 29, 2014
'Russian nesting doll' design provides unique fire protection solution for movie negatives
A major movie studio needed a new vault to protect its irreplaceable negatives for films released after 1982. SmithGroupJJR came up with a box-in-a-box design solution. It was named a Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.