Scott Frances
Outside, this museum addition is clad in matte anodized-aluminum panels that subtly reflect the adjacent green hillside, while inside, hundreds of elliptical oculi provide full-spectrum daylight for the galleries. Phifer’s expansion is effectively one large room, subdivided with freestanding and movable partitions, creating an easy flow from space to space.
Jury: “From a distance, the building appears as a normal industrial building fitting into its context—upon approach it is an amazingly precise and elegant box.”
Client: “We were not interested in architectural bravado, but sought architectural excellence in executing a quiet, elegant, and stunning building which married art to nature. We also wanted to remove barriers to [create] a free-flowing democratic experience with art accessible by many entrances all on one level. Thomas Phifer created a stunning building, which expressed our collective goals brilliantly. The … [return on investment] is priceless. The spirit of the architect lives in every immaculate detail and infuses the space with breathtaking beauty.” —Lawrence Wheeler, director, North Carolina Museum of Art
2011 Institute Honor Awards for Architecture
Jury
David Miller, FAIA, (chair) The Miller Hull Partnership
Ashley Clark, Assoc. AIA, LandDesign
Curtis Fentress, FAIA, Fentress Architects
T. Gunny Harboe, FAIA, Harboe Architect
David Neuman, FAIA, University of Virginia
Louis Pounders, FAIA, ANF Architects
Sarah Snodgrass, AIAS Representative, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Allison Williams, FAIA, Perkins+Will
Jennifer Yoos, AIA, VJAA
Ford Assembly Building, Richmond, Calif.
North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, N.C.
University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, Mich.
New Acropolis Museum, Athens, Greece
One Jackson Square, New York
Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre, AT&T Performing Arts Center, Dallas
Rooftop Garden, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco
Horizontal Skyscraper Vanke Center, Shenzhen, China
Diana Center, Barnard College, New York
U.S. Land Port of Entry, Warroad, Minn.