New Grand Rapids Art Museum

[GRDadof3]

New Art Museum on Monroe Center as of Sept. 20th, 2005

Rendering:

[mpchicago]

The renderings of this project have been far and few between and a little lacking of detail or maybe that is exactly what the building will look like! We haven

[GRDadof3]

You came to the right place, mp!

From inside the cafe on Monroe Center:

Education Center entrance on Louis:

Park waterfall facing West toward Monroe:

Gallery Court along Ottawa:

I agree, the place makes me nervous, especially how TALL it will be (about 4 - 5 stories).

[woz]

http://www.andotadao.org/plaza2.htm

This Japanese museum might give you an idea of what the finished GRAM will feel like on the outside. It was designed by Tadao Ando, who was a mentor of the LA architect the GRAM brought in to tweak their $912,376 (according to the Press) coceptual design.

[mpchicago]

http://www.andotadao.org/plaza2.htm

This Japanese museum might give you an idea of what the finished GRAM will feel like on the outside. It was designed by Tadao Ando, who was a mentor of the LA architect the GRAM brought in to tweak their $912,376 (according to the Press) coceptual design.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I think I'm going to be sick.

[woz]

Didn't mean to scare you, mpchicago. I think I picked the worst possible page to link.

Also see below ...

http://www.tadaoando.com/

http://www.greatbuildings.com/architects/Tadao_Ando.html

And realize, this is the mentor, not the actual man who did our museum.

-woz

[GRDadof3]

OMG! That's what I was afraid of:

I've seen those holes in concrete in the renderings from WHY.

This would be cell block A

OK, we need to take back that whole area from the Art Museum. This cannot be the new focal point for that part of downtown. All the more reason that the new PWCD project go BIG and BOLD to overshadow this!

[GRDadof3]

woz, what are your feelings about the new Art Museum, since you seem to be a little closer to it as a member of the "press corps"?

[woz]

Come on, GRDad! I scared mpchicago by accident; you're trying to scare all of us on purpose!

Concrete isn't always institutional; it can also be very majestic as a building material. Locally, check out the VAI. Or, check out the Teatro Armani in Milan that the GRAM architect did while working with Tadao Ando:

Or the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts they built in St. Louis:

Or the Museum of Modern Art they built in Ft. Worth:

[GRDadof3]

Yep, still the same cold feeling, although at least those are a little better. I only posted pictures from the museum you linked to. I just am not a big fan, and especially in that area of Monroe Center. What do you say to the people working in the upper floors of Ledyard or Aldrich, "Here is a blank concrete wall to stare at, but please don't kill yourself on work time".

And the back side of the VAI is its worst side by far. Does anyone else like the back of VAI? I thought it just had to be that way because of a tight budget, for mechanical purposes, or because it was going to be partially covered up by Phase II. It's that way intentionally??

[snoogit]

Yep, still the same cold feeling, although at least those are a little better.  I only posted pictures from the museum you linked to.  I just am not a big fan, and especially in that area of Monroe Center.  What do you say to the people working in the upper floors of Ledyard or Aldrich, "Here is a blank concrete wall to stare at, but please don't kill yourself on work time". 

And the back side of the VAI is its worst side by far.  Does anyone else like the back of VAI?  I thought it just had to be that way because of a tight budget, for mechanical purposes, or because it was going to be partially covered up by Phase II.  It's that way intentionally??

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

its for phase II

[GRDadof3]

That's what I thought. I guess I will wait to pass any more judgement on this project to see how it progresses.

[joeDowntown]

I am thinking people will turn ghostly white as the approach Fortress de Art Museum. I think that is what the renderings represent.

Woz, You do give us a little hope though. I still bet it will go the way of the old Police Station in 20-30 years. I wonder why they didn't call Mike Brady in to tweak the design? Although I guess he was more residential than institutional.

GRDad, VAI part deux will rock. I think it will be a landmark building when finished, especially the the Lutheran Church right next to it. Such contrast. The whole idea of having an old church and a modern building so close reminds of the I.M. Pei building in Boston (forget the name).

Joe

[GRDadof3]

I am thinking people will turn ghostly white as the approach Fortress de Art Museum. I think that is what the renderings represent.

Woz, You do give us a little hope though. I still bet it will go the way of the old Police Station in 20-30 years. I wonder why they didn't call Mike Brady in to tweak the design? Although I guess he was more residential than institutional.

GRDad, VAI part deux will rock. I think it will be a landmark building when finished, especially the the Lutheran Church right next to it. Such contrast. The whole idea of having an old church and a modern building so close reminds of the I.M. Pei building in Boston (forget the name).

Joe

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Oh yah! I totally agree. I was referring to the concrete parapets that stand right now looking over the church. That whole backside is U.G.L.Y. (as mp would say).

[MJLO]

if they keep alot of green around the new GRAM, it may provide a very nice contrast to the building. Alsowill the building be lit up at night ? I kind of had this thought that those, um, Glass tower things, on the top of the building would be lit up. That potentially could provide some much needed lighting for downtown. Granted you cant see Monroe Center from the expressways, But it still would be cool. I'm anxious to see what it all looks like.

[joeDowntown]

MJLO,

I know that the original plan had four beacons of light on the roof. I don't know if that was retained or scrapped during the redesign.

Joe

if they keep alot of green around the new GRAM, it may provide a very nice contrast to the building.  Alsowill the building be lit up at night ? I kind of had this thought that those, um, Glass tower things,  on the top of the building would be lit up.  That potentially could provide some much needed lighting for downtown.  Granted you cant see Monroe Center from the expressways,  But it still would be cool.  I'm anxious to see what it all looks like.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[publius]

I'm quite optimistic about the new museum design, and the renderings I have seen...

The influential mentor for this school of design, Ando, has impeccable credentials, and I understand his innovative methods of casting the concrete have more of a sheen and are thinner than the normal style of bulky concrete construction, and so seem lighter and allow spaces of various sizes easily...

The intent is to vary the size of the spaces, create only subtle changes of color and texture (on the rendition you see variations of white, grey and blue, I believe), and allow in lots of natural light from the various openings created by this delicate style of construction...

The reason the artistic community likes this type of approach is that in the interior, such architectural thinking gets out of the way of the individual works of art easily, and the generousness of the natural lighting enhances the displays...

On the exterior, it is meant to blend in with an urbanscape, and remember there are buildings of every conceivable architectural style around it, including some whose surface will reflect the museum and the greenery in the park...

The philosphy is not unlike that of one of our old favorites, Frank Lloyd Wright, except more urbanized with a pronounced Japanese flavor, lol

[mpchicago]

Apparently GRCC was way ahead of its time, as it appears that the use of concrete is rather popular with architects these days. Are they doing it because they really like the look or is it just cheaper? I guess we have no choice but to wait and see how it comes out in the end.

The Muesum of Contemporary Art here in Chicago is a concrete box

[GRDadof3]

I found this image of when Munkenbeck was doing the design of the Ottawa/Monroe Center corner. It does show the lighted glass "blocks" on top. WHY's rendering shows four of them now, I think, but I don't know if they are glass and uplit:

Sorry, it's kind of small.

And it seems a lot of museums in Europe are made of concrete:

Marketplace Theatre and Arts Centre, Armagh, Northern Ireland

The Courtyard Theatre and Arts Centre, Hereford, Herefordshire, UK

New Entrance Building, Museum Island, Berlin

It must be all the rage. Here is the expansion on the Virginia Musuem of Fine Arts:

Some of these aren't bad.

[torgo]

Well maybe I'm wierd, but I think that concrete looks just terrible. Some of the designs look better than others, but on the whole I just don't like it. They're just a series of blocks with a few windows here and there. They look too much like some kind of bomb-proof fortress, not a location to show world-class pieces of art. Maybe I'm not artsy enough

[GRDadof3]

A little birdie told me that a certain GR periodical is going to do an interview with the lead architect on this project, and has actually expressed feedback and concerns from this forum (previous threads) to the architect. I am trying to be more open-minded and I am starting to think the design might be a good addition to downtown. It will definitely make downtown look like more than just 1800's Italianate and 80's - 90's corporate glass. I just hope the concrete has some texture, color and softness to it, not like the poured/form concrete on VAI that has splotches and dull colors to it

[mpchicago]

"A little birdie told me that a certain GR periodical is going to do an interview with the lead architect on this project, and has actually expressed feedback and concerns from this forum (previous threads) to the architect."

Can we look forward to an article shortly in a certain Grand Rapids based magazine form a certain UP former?

[GRDadof3]

"A little birdie told me that a certain GR periodical is going to do an interview with the lead architect on this project, and has actually expressed feedback and concerns from this forum (previous threads) to the architect."

Can we look forward to an article shortly in a certain Grand Rapids based magazine form a certain UP former?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Maybe I agree with MJLO that if they green it up considerably with trees, grass and the waterfall, it might be just what that area needed.

And get the word out now. NO SKATEBOARDING off of those steps!

[Prankster]

It is definately going to be different than anything else that is currently downtown. A little mixing of styles in the CBD is a good thing.

[GRDadof3]

I found an old article stating that the new Art Museum will contain a "car-sized" elevator to the exhibition spaces on the 2nd and 3rd floors. This is back when Munkenbeck was on the design team, but perhaps they kept some of the basic features. I'm beginning to think this project might be pretty cool!

http://www.gr-press.com/new-site-04/story6.html