Snøhetta, BIG and OMA among big names fighting for Albright-Knox art museum expansion contract
by Kim Megson | 15 Mar 2016
The existing Albright-Knox building was created in 1905 by Edward B. Green / YouTube
New York’s contemporary art museum the Albright-Knox Art Gallery has announced its intention to launch an US$80m (€72m, £55.8m) expansion of its Elmwood Avenue campus, with five high-flying studios in the running to design the project.
Allied Works Architecture, Bjarke Ingels Group, OMA, Snøhetta and wHY have all been shortlisted for the tender, with the final selection due in June 2016 and the design phase set to take place in 2017.
“As the next phase in a project of generational significance for the Albright-Knox and western New York, we seek an architectural partner to work closely with us over the coming year in developing plans for an expanded and refurbished museum,” said museum director Dr. Janne Sirén. “A particularly important aspect of the project will be its sensitivity to our existing historic buildings and their setting in an iconic Olmsted park.
“The community has asked us to consider how an expanded museum can enhance the entire cultural district that surrounds us, and with that in mind our partner will engage in an active public dialogue during the design phase.”
The Albright-Knox, which was founded as The Buffalo Fine Arts Academy in 1862, is the sixth-oldest public art museum in the United States. It has a collection of over 8,000 modern and contemporary artworks from around the world, but only around 200 can be shown at any one time due to space restrictions.
The expansion has been planned to maximise the social and economic impact of the museum, transforming it into “a vibrant hub where people from all walks of life can connect with art, ideas, and one another.”
The existing Beaux-Arts marble building was designed by Edward B. Green and opened in 1905, with a new wing, auditorium and sculpture garden added by Gordon Bunshaft in 1962.
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New York’s contemporary art museum the Albright-Knox Art Gallery has announced its intention to launch an US$80m (€72m, £55.8m) expansion of its Elmwood Avenue campus, with five high-flying studios in the running to design the project. Allied Works Architecture, Bjarke Ingels Group, OMA, Snøhetta and wHY have all been shortlisted for the tender, with the final selection due in June 2016 and the design phase set to take place in
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