san francisco museum of modern art (SFMOMA )

'SFMOMA expansion' by snhetta in san francisco, california, USA

expanding SFMOMA's role as a place for learning, inspiration, and interaction, for residents of the Bay Area and beyond.
expansion will double the museum's exhibition and education space in addition to providing an open and inviting public realm for the bay area residents and visitors extending from the back of the existing brick structure, the design aims to provide SFMOMA with a great public profile and an openness that will welcome visitors from both inside of the city and out. seamlessly integrated but vastly different in form, proportion and material, the new structure will feature a fully glazed facade and a series of complex pathways that aim to link the museum - and its interior spaces - with the surrounding urban neighborhood. the design aims to establish expansive public places and pedestrian routes that will revitalize and energize the neighborhood SFMOMA's expansion will enliven the neighborhood through a generous plan that frees connections between well-known surrounding streets and more hidden urban spaces. the building will encourage people to enjoy the intimate small streets as much as the heavily used thoroughfares of the distric

circulation between the museum and the city

Public circulation between the museum and the city will be enhanced through the creation of free ground-level galleries, new entrances that make the museum accessible from every direction, a central public gathering place, and more extensive routes of public circulation. The use of glass throughout the building, as well as the creation of several outdoor terraces and a new sculpture garden, further serves to open up the museum and connect it to the city. The design of the interior spaces . Two main entrances (the current entrance on Third Street and a new one on Natoma) will lead into a central space that will serve as the public entry point to all galleries. To create an expansive, flowing space on the entry level of the museum, the original staircase will be removed from the Botta atrium. There will also be a new entrance added on Minna Street to facilitate the arrival of school groups.

main elements :
the new SFMOMA will feature a variety of education spaces throughout the building, directly connected to the galleries. In addition, an innovative, multifunctional gallery space will be easily adapted for educational programs, live performances, and special events. The expansion also includes galleries of differing scale, materials, and lighting specifically designed to showcase a range of art, from photography to installation, video, painting, and sculpture. The galleries in the existing and new buildings will be unified and total 130,000 square feet, doubling our current gallery space. The building also introduces a faade on Howard Street that will feature a large, street-level gallery enclosed in glass on three sides, providing views of both the art in the galleries and the new public spaces

Art Court

view from howard street

This is a place where architecture and function will be married together, said Craig Dykers with Snhetta. We will have new access points. And we also want visitors to be able to see the art from the moment they walk in, to see the art from eye-level and also from above and below. among the things they are looking to do is rise the mass of the building off the ground. New entrances will make the museum accessible from all directions. We wanted to give everyone the same experience when they came in, no matter which access point it was from, he said. So we have a central gathering place planned, which will not only help with circulation of people throughout the museum, but also as a public entry point to all of the galleries. New proposed staircase

The design will integrate the current Mario Botta-designed building with the new Snhetta expansion into one seamless facility. Gone will be the original three-story staircase from the Botta atrium. Among the additions will be two outdoor terraces and a new sculpture garden. And the galleries will all be on the lower floors as the project designers want to bring the art closer to the ground level. Dykers said one of the most important inclusions in the expansion project is its focus on education. There will be a dedicated entry for students on Minna Street. Like every other aspect of the building, students will be able to have the same experience that other visitors have by going from the lobby to the new educational hub. There will also be places throughout the museum for educational purposes. We want to give students the same experiences and not have them feel out of place when they come to the museum. Perhaps the most visually appealing aspect of the new building will be its exterior, which will be built with a crafted concrete. Visitors will be able to see almost a ripple effect on certain walls which will depend on the sunlight and time of day you visit.