BALTIMORE MUSEUM OF ART MAJOR RENOVATIONS

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Justin Whitehead
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BALTIMORE MUSEUM OF ART MAJOR RENOVATIONS BALTIMORE, MARYLAND INSTITUTIONAL The BMA embarked on a three-year phased capital renovation, completed in conjunction with the Museum s 100th anniversary,

1 BALTIMORE MUSEUM OF ART MAJOR RENOVATIONS BALTIMORE, MARYLAND INSTITUTIONAL The BMA embarked on a three-year phased capital renovation, completed in conjunction with the Museum s 100th anniversary, to improve the visitor s experience, upgrade and modernize the aging infrastructure, and reconfigure behind-the-scenes work areas to support the Museum s service to the community. The historic Merrick entry is reopened, allowing visitors to experience the museum the way John Russell Pope intended. Improved mechanical systems maintain the conservation environment within. Just inside the front doors, the historic Fox Court is restored with new lighting and discretely integrated life safety systems. The adjacent American G alleries were reorganized and completed renovated with new materials and lighting that respond to the original Pope G alleries. A complete re-design of the East Lobby transforms the visitor s experience. The awkwardly placed existing main stair is relocated to the east, adjacent to a new, full height, gracefully curved wall that delineates the new retail space, opening and providing a large contiguous space for events. The interior finishes introduce a material palette that is contemporary, refined and elegant, while at the same time durable and timeless. Beyond the lobby on the lower level, the renovations bring significant improvements for visitors, including much needed improvements in essential life safety infrastructure and a state-of-the-art building automation system improve care of the 90,000 works of art in the Museum s world-class collection. Reorganization of the First Floor references Pope s gallery design on the Second Floor and introduces galleries that establish order with new axial relationships, raised ceilings, clarified proportions, and refreshed gallery spaces for BMA s treasured collections of African and Asian Art.

FORMER SECOND FLOOR CURRENT SECOND FLOOR FORMER FIRST FLOOR CURRENT FIRST FLOOR ORGANIZATION The former gallery organization confused visitors and limited exhibition space.

2 FORMER SECOND FLOOR CURRENT SECOND FLOOR FORMER FIRST FLOOR CURRENT FIRST FLOOR ORGANIZATION The former gallery organization confused visitors and limited exhibition space. Taking cues from John Russell Pope s original design, the design team reorganized the galleries to provide for a continuous all gallery experience with space for visitor orientation and expanded space for educational programming. Significant attention is also given to updating and reorganizing the staff workspaces and collections support space.

CONTEMPORARY WING FOX COURT LOBBY AMERICAN WING

LEVEL 2 AFRICAN ART GALLERIES ASIAN ART GALLERIES

FORMER LEVEL 1 20-0 40-0 80-0 ZAMOISKI ENTRANCE

RESTAURANT OFFICE LIBRARY AUDITORIUM CIRCULATION

3 CONTEMPORARY WING FOX COURT LOBBY AMERICAN WING UPPER EAST LOBBY FORMER LEVEL 2 MERRICK ENTRANCE LEVEL 2 AFRICAN ART GALLERIES ASIAN ART GALLERIES LEARNING & CREATIVITY CENTER EAST LOBBY BMA SHOP FORMER LEVEL ZAMOISKI ENTRANCE WURTZBURGER ENTRANCE GALLERY EDUCATION SHOP RESTAURANT OFFICE LIBRARY AUDITORIUM CIRCULATION VAULT STORAGE ART SUPPORT STAFF SUPPORT BUILDING SUPPORT RESTROOMS LEVEL 1

4 FORMER FORMER HISTORIC HISTORIC The historic Merrick entry is reopened, allowing visitors to experience the museum the way John Russell Pope intended.

5 The historic Fox Court is restored with new lighting and discretely integrated life safety systems, and adapted to serve various uses.

6 FORMER EAST LOBBY The dim and poorly defined former East Lobby needed a complete re-design in order to clarify and enhance visitor experience.

7 The new East Lobby welcomes visitors into a large contiguous space. The main stair, which previously bisected the space, is relocated to the east and guides the visitor towards the art. The new curved venetian plaster wall softens the space with a welcoming form and the material palette is minimal and distilled.

8 FORMER GALLERIES The former galleries housing the Museum s American, African, and Asian collections received much needed improvements in infrastructure and organization. Previously, the African collection was exhibited among the Asian, Native American, and South- Pacific island collections, all of which lacked clear distinction. The new Africa Gallery is relocated to be on axis with the main entrance above, and is now at the same scale as Fox Court.

9 The adjacent American Galleries were reorganized and completed renovated with new materials and proportions that respond to the original Pope Galleries.

10 The reinstalled American Wing galleries showcase the impact of maximized ceiling heights and new lighting.

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston unveils Design Concepts of Master Site Plan

Press release 14 February 2002 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston unveils Design Concepts of Master Site Plan Today, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston unveiled the architectural designs of its comprehensive Master