Façade installation is underway on the New Museum‘s seven-story expansion at 231 Bowery in the Bowery section of Manhattan’s Lower East Side. PG New York is fabricating and installing four distinct corrugated metal panel types and ACM panels on the North and South façades. Designed by Rem Koolhaas and Shohei Shigematsu of OMA along with Cooper Robertson & Partners, the 174-foot-tall annex stands directly south of the SANAA-designed main building, which was completed in 2007. The 60,000-square-foot addition connects laterally to the original structure and will more than double the institution’s footprint to 115,277 square feet. The new building will contain three gallery floors, an 80-seat restaurant, a larger bookstore, and offices for staff, among other spaces. The property is located at the intersection of Bowery and Prince Street.
Recent photographs show the angular steel-framed superstructure in the process of being enclosed in its façade. Portions of the interior are visible, including the tall atrium surrounded by a wraparound staircase along the edge of the abstract multistory geometric volume, and the inner walls, which have yet to be painted. Crews were also seen working across the sloped rooftop behind the orange perimeter netting. Three of the four triangular cutouts on the roof will house terraces, while the remaining void will serve as a skylight that will illuminate the new exhibition space.
The New Museum. Photo by Michael Young
The New Museum. Photo by Michael Young
The New Museum. Photo by Michael Young
The New Museum. Photo by Michael Young
The New Museum. Photo by Michael Young
The New Museum. Photo by Michael Young
The New Museum. Photo by Michael Young
The New Museum. Photo by Michael Young.
The below street-level rendering looks east along Spring Street at the new addition and its sleek, angular volume that contrasts with the original structure’s form of stacked boxes. The annex’s façade of laminated glass and metal mesh adds further contrast to the main building’s metal envelope.
New Museum at 235 Bowery, Rendering via OMA Instagram
The following circulation diagram previews the new wing’s programming and the connection points with the original structure. A portion of the main building’s southern elevation was removed to accommodate the overbuild. Ceiling heights in the new three-story gallery spaces will also align with SANAAS’s existing structure.
New Museum at 235 Bowery, Rendering via OMA Instagram
Additional programming in the annex will include artist residency studios, an upper-level forum for education and public programs that will connect to the existing Sky Room, and a home for the museum’s new cultural incubator, NEW INC. The building will feature an expanded lobby with three new elevators, with two dedicated to gallery access, and a new public plaza that will host art installations, performances, and gatherings.
The nearest subways from the New Museum are the F train at the 2nd Avenue station to the north at Houston Street, the 6 train to the west at the Spring Street station, and the J and Z trains at the Bowery station to the south.
The New Museum is expected to reopen with the new addition sometime next year.
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Usually not a good idea when the ‘envelope’ competes with what’s inside it, but let’s see..
Yeah I like seeing all those steel details and framework of the structure too
looking pretty cool.
This trend of iconoclasm, is puerile and has out run its time. Just because its “different” doesn’t mean its creative or art. So tired of dead modernism.
Agree that this is dead modernism. I do understand that a museum is a special use and the structure must be designed to maximize the use inside; museums need space and light,
I also understand the desire for a museum to stand out from its surroundings.
All good. But can we now design something that is attractive and complimentary to its setting?
It is the architectural equivalent of the Cybertruck. And just as awful.
The Cybertruck analogy is unfortunate (given these times), but sadly not without merit when looking at the renders.
However, the basic strategy and diagram behind this design (and the urban/experiential payoffs) all seem good: pushing the vertical circulation to the front (in contrast to the original New Museum building), activating the facade with that circulation, and fostering a connection for visitors back to the street and city at large. Not a huge fan of the fenestration (window pattern) in the renderings – but am withholding final judgement until the building is completed…
The two buildings complement each other so well/s
Vanity project.
Build something useful, like housing.
Museums are incredibly useful and vital and they can be built right alongside housing. Thank you New York City for another iconic addition to our beautiful island.
Beauty! Love it.
The stairways are intriguing. Always glad to see a new building with active circulation.