flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Mies’ Martin Luther King Jr. Library to get makeover

Cultural Facilities

Mies’ Martin Luther King Jr. Library to get makeover

The architects say the modernization aims to improve “Mies in a contemporary Miesian way.”


By BD+C Staff | April 7, 2015
Mies’ Martin Luther King Jr. Library to get a Mecanoo makeover

"While not final, these renderings demonstrate the amazing possibilities as we work to transform this historic building into a center for learning, innovation and engagement for the District," the library said in a statement. Renderings courtesy Mecanoo and Martinez + Johnson Architecture

ArchDaily reports that Mecanoo and Martinez + Johnson Architecture have released plans to modernize the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in Washington D.C., designed by Mies van der Rohe and completed in 1972.

The architects said their makeover design was to improve “Mies in a contemporary Miesian way.”

In a statement, the MLK library said: “While not final, these renderings demonstrate the amazing possibilities as we work to transform this historic building into a center for learning, innovation and engagement for the District.”

The structure is Mies’ only library and only work in D.C. According to a release from Mecanoo, the 37,000-sm landmark features “transparency and light [that] stand as metaphors for freedom and knowledge, the very principles of Dr. King’s life teachings.”

Mecanoo also adds that the modernization revolves around respect for the original architecture, “while updating the building to a modern library that reflects a focus on people, celebrating the exchange of knowledge, ideas, and culture.”

Find out more at ArchDaily.

 

Related Stories

| Aug 12, 2014

Design firms invited to submit qualifications for St. Petersburg, Fla., waterfront project

The city of St. Petersburg, Fla., invites firms to submit their ideas for a new and improved pier for Florida's fifth largest city.

| Aug 5, 2014

Shigeru Ban-designed Aspen Art Museum will open doors to public this week

After 18 month of planning and construction, the museum will open its new Shigeru Ban-designed facility to the public on August 9.

| Aug 4, 2014

Jean Nouvel commissioned to design Islam Museum next to WTC

El-Gamal's plans has been dubbed controversial by many industry professionals.

| Jul 29, 2014

Studio Gang Architects, MAD to design George Lucas' museum in Chicago

Star Wars director George Lucas selected Chicago-based Studio Gang Architects and Beijing firm MAD to design his proposed art museum on Chicago’s lakefront.

| Jul 28, 2014

Reconstruction market benefits from improving economy, new technology [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Following years of fairly lackluster demand for commercial property remodeling, reconstruction revenue is improving, according to the 2014 Giants 300 report.

| Jul 28, 2014

Reconstruction Sector Construction Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Structure Tone, Turner, and Gilbane top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction contractor and construction management firms in the U.S.

| Jul 28, 2014

Reconstruction Sector Engineering Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Jacobs, URS, and Wiss, Janney, Elstner top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction engineering and engineering/architecture firms in the U.S.

| Jul 28, 2014

Reconstruction Sector Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Stantec, HDR, and HOK top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction architecture and architecture/engineering firms in the U.S.

| Jul 25, 2014

Philip Johnson’s 'Tent of Tomorrow' vandalized, damaged with fire

Vandals set fire to a stolen van in the park, which in turn caught the tarp covering the pavilion's 50-year old Terrazzo Map on fire.

| Jul 23, 2014

Architecture Billings Index up nearly a point in June

AIA reported the June ABI score was 53.5, up from a mark of 52.6 in May.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category

Adaptive Reuse

Detroit’s Michigan Central Station, centerpiece of innovation hub, opens

The recently opened Michigan Central Station in Detroit is the centerpiece of a 30-acre technology and cultural hub that will include development of urban transportation solutions. The six-year adaptive reuse project of the 640,000 sf historic station, created by the same architect as New York’s Grand Central Station, is the latest sign of a reinvigorating Detroit.


Museums

Connecticut’s Bruce Museum more than doubles its size with a 42,000-sf, three-floor addition

In Greenwich, Conn., the Bruce Museum, a multidisciplinary institution highlighting art, science, and history, has undergone a campus revitalization and expansion that more than doubles the museum’s size. Designed by EskewDumezRipple and built by Turner Construction, the project includes a 42,000-sf, three-floor addition as well as a comprehensive renovation of the 32,500-sf museum, which was originally built as a private home in the mid-19th century and expanded in the early 1990s. 



Cultural Facilities

Multipurpose sports facility will be first completed building at Obama Presidential Center

When it opens in late 2025, the Home Court will be the first completed space on the Obama Presidential Center campus in Chicago. Located on the southwest corner of the 19.3-acre Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park, the Home Court will be the largest gathering space on the campus. Renderings recently have been released of the 45,000-sf multipurpose sports facility and events space designed by Moody Nolan.

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021