Walker Art Center Expansion, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Related people

Robert Livesey (was created by)
Jacques Herzog (architect)
Pierre de Meuron (architect)
Herzog and de Meuron (architect)

Description

"Grass circles, surfacing amid pavers like stepping stones in a stream, lead to the entrance along Hennepin Avenue." - p.91 "The seemingly quirky window shapes actually frame specific views of downtown, while the glass corridor on street level connects the museum visually with the traffic artery of Hennepin Avenue. With a spirit of playfulness unprecedented in the Barnes structure, the extension engages the city." -- p.99 "With chunky massing and silvery, lightly crumpled aluminum cladding, Herzog & de Meuron's Walker Art Center expansion hovers over the sidewalk: a striking counterpoint to its adjoining neighbor, the center's original, decisively grounded, brick-clad structure by Edward Larrabee Barnes. As if tossed out by centripetal force, a series of four skewed, box-like structures, embedded in a broad glassy passageway, now extend up the hill from the Barnes building. The series culminates in the tallest volume, the bulky block of ice, rising five stories and housing the art center's new theater, restaurant, and event space." -- p.89 -- Amelar, S. (2005, July). Herzog & de Meuron expand Minneapolis's WALKER ART CENTER with quirky new volumes spun from the original building's tight spiral. Architectural Record, p. 89, 91, 99. Keywords: United States, Minnesota, Hennepin County, exhibitions and exhibition structures, skin, Lilja panels, hexagonal windows, urban context, grass, turf, circles, outdoor spaces. Submitted by Sabrina Sierawski

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