Los Angeles-based Frank Gehry, FAIA, has signed on to design a new museum in North Adams, Mass., according to the The New York Times. The proposed site—which will be about six blocks away from Mass MoCA—will feature model trains running around models of famous buildings from all over the world that were built within the last 150 years. Thomas Krens, who was formerly the director of the Guggenheim Museum, is spearheading the project, and worked with Gehry to rejuvenate Mass MoCA in the 1980s. This will be the collaborators’ fifth project together, according to The Berkshire Eagle. The duo will work with New York firm Gluckman Tang on the project, as well.
Dubbed the Extreme Model Railroad and Contemporary Architecture Museum, the building’s roof will be at least 40 feet high to allow room for the tallest model skyscrapers. The cityscape exhibit will be on one scale and feature the work of 71 prominent architects from around the world. Six of them will be by Gehry—a choice made by Krens.
According to The New York Times, Krens estimates the museum will be built by 2020 and will cost nearly $65 million to build. It is part of a larger masterplan by Krens to build additional amenities such as a bridge, a commercial art storage facility, a new park, and other structures.
