Albright-Knox Art Gallery

Project Details

Project Description

FROM THE ARCHITECTS (June 25, 2018):

The Albright-Knox Art Gallery announced today the next phase in its AK360 expansion project, sharing the preliminary schematic design for a bold, freestanding building on a greener, park-like campus.

The Albright-Knox Art Gallery entered a new phase in its AK360 Campus Development and Expansion project to create a bold new work of signature architecture on the north side of its historic campus in the heart of Buffalo. Under the plan developed by the museum and OMA/Shohei Shigematsu, the new building will add 29,000 sf of much-needed space for displaying special exhibitions and the museum’s world-renowned art collection. The new building will also incorporate several visitor amenities and is envisioned to have a wraparound promenade that visually and aesthetically connects the interior of the building with the existing campus and landscape.

In addition to the new North Building, OMA will work on preservation and improvements to the existing campus. Changes include creating a new education wing in the lower level of the 1962 building, transforming a surface parking lot into a green landscape and gathering place, adding a new point of entry and exit on the east façade of the museum’s 1962 building and creating new education wing in the lower level of the 1962 building. A scenic bridge weaving through Olmsted Park will connect the North Building with the 1905 building along with a new roof enclosure for the 1962 building’s open-air sculpture garden will activate the museum with year-round activities. The free-standing North Building along with the roof of the 1962 building will contribute a new profile and language to the existing lineage of architectural history of the campus.

Shohei Shigematsu stated, “The north building comprises three levels offering diverse gallery experiences. Encircling the second level gallery is a double-height promenade, a flexible space with 360-degree views to the surrounding buildings and Olmsted landscape. The building is enveloped by a translucent façade that achieves an open and ephemeral quality and engages the external environment. Layers of visual and spatial connections throughout the north building foster dialogue with the architectural legacy of the Albright-Knox while inviting contemporary audiences to discover the diverse activities within.”

Janne Sirén, Peggy Pierce Elfvin Director of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, said, “We are thrilled with the evolution of AK360 into this new plan, which solves all the programmatic and operational challenges the museum has faced while meeting the priorities our community has so clearly expressed to us. Our goal has always been to make the museum a more welcoming, accessible, and inclusive place, physically and philosophically, while adding to Buffalo’s remarkable architectural legacy. Though much work remains to be done, including a multistep approvals process, we are now well on the way toward achieving that ambition, thanks to the vision and collaborative spirit of Shohei Shigematsu and his team at OMA, the leadership of our Board of Directors, including Board President Alice Jacobs and AK360 Project Committee Chair Michael Joseph, the philanthropic vision of our lead donor, Jeffrey Gundlach, and above all to the people of Buffalo, who have been so forthcoming and generous in joining with us to make AK360 a success.”