A New Look for the Tacoma Art Museum
The Tacoma Art Museum has released its plans for the new wing that will house its recently acquired Western Art collection. And to call it a “wing” is to understate the addition; the 16,000-square-foot expansion essentially doubles the space of the existing museum which holds 12,000-square-feet of galleries and an 8,000-square-foot education wing. The new space creates more than 50% more gallery space, and will house the 280-piece Western Art collection donated by Erivan and Helga Haub last year.
The design of the new Haub wing derives its aesthetic in part from its elemental simplicity and its use-driven design, taking its cues from pieces of Tacoma’s history including traditional Native American long houses and railroading. The new building will include an interior sculpture hall with high windows that will be shaded with exterior screens along Pacific Avenue. The shades have the scale and form of historic box cars. These screens will modulate interior lighting, shifting into different configurations by rolling on track rails along the top of the building facade.
The long, low edition facing Pacific looks like it avoids impeding the impressive view from TAM’s second floor event space. It aims to give the museum a more prominent street presence, while honoring the existing award-winning 2003 museum building. An airy, large-scale canopy continues the roof line of the existing building, and announces the new main entry to the museum through a new lobby containing a sculpture hall, which joins the two wings.
The plans still need Landmarks Preservation Commission approval (scheduled for April 24), but if all goes according to plan, construction on the addition is scheduled to begin this fall, with an anticipated opening date in late 2014.
In conversations anticipating an update to TAM’s interface with Pacific, we’ve heard the wish expressed that the addition will be more open to Pacific, acting as a kind of “front porch.” Do these plans look like they achieved that wish? Is this the new face of Tacoma’s museum district?
Read the full press release here.
Filed under: Downtown Tacoma, Arts, Neighborhoods, Museums, Tacoma Art Museum
4 comments
E Erik B. April 18, 2013
Nice to see more investments in downtown Tacoma. The Haub wing has the potential to add more life and vibrancy to Tacoma.
Better now to get a better design than create another dead zone and then fly in consultants from around the world in an attempt to “activate” one of Tacoma’s many dead zones.
Changing the glass to clear in the dining area will open up the building a bit. However, as designed, there are a lot of improvements that could be made. Overall, the current design is too insular and a detriment to street vibrancy.
Here is the chance to design the building in a beneficial way to downtown rather than creating another dead area of Pacific Avenue.
Pacific Avenue has been adding one dead zone or blank wall after another. If downtown Tacoma is ever going to have a vibrant downtown, the city needs to demand better urban designed buildings.
The proposed design kills off much of the potential connection with the street to the detriment of pedestrians and street vibrancy.
The new wing
The new wing will present virtually a long blank wall facing Pacific Avenue. The dark foreboding colors make the area look scary. The screens in front of the windows eliminate most of the connection with the street. Only slightly better than the Wells Fargo parking garage on Pacific Avenue for pedestrians.
Entryway
The entrance to TAM has improved slightly. The old entrance was hidden around the corner and no one could tell if the museum was open or nor. The new entrance appears to at least face the street. However, it is small and looks like any entrance to a strip mall. The awning above does not help.
The Plaza
The plaza in front of TAM is similar to the vacuous and dead Tollefson Plaza. A huge notable art piece like Seattle Art Museum Hammering Man would help a lot.
Filling in the plaza with a building helps some. However, the designers then go to great lengths to sever the street life from the building.
The Seattle Art Museum has far more open windows facing the street with lighter less foreboding colors with a more marked and grander entrance.
Hopefully, the design will be vetted and modified to take into account not just the insular purpose of the museum to show art to patrons, but to also value downtown Tacoma as well.
T Tyler April 18, 2013
i hate to be this blunt, but i think it’s hideous. i am a huge fan of modern architecture and design, but this is not flattering at all nor is it complementary to the existing structure. the new wing feels very closed off and not welcoming. i think this area needs to be active, full of life and energy. as it stands now, this design is depressing and lifeless.
R RR Anderson April 19, 2013
photoshop more people in the design renderings!
D David Boe April 19, 2013
Just got the opportunity to review the full set of plans – and do not believe that renderings that have been posted do justice to the design proposal. I am very impressed with the way the architects added to the original building while also addressing the many, many un-urban aspects of the original (which to be fair – was planned with a large green sculpture park across Pacific which was later abandoned when the LINK alignment was changed from Pacific to run up Court B and thus creating the ‘resultant’ space we all know and love as Tollefson Plaza).