Olson Kundig

Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing

TACOMA ART MUSEUM BENAROYA WING

Olson Kundig

Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider

ARCHITECTS
Olson Kundig

GENERAL CONTRACTOR
Jtm Construction

CATEGORY
Museum

AREA
6595.0 m2

PROJECT YEAR
2019

CIVIL ENGINEER
Cpl

STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING
Pcs

LIGHTING
Design Arup

MECHANICAL AND ELECTRICAL ENGINEER
Wsp

LOCATION
Tacoma, Washington, United States

MECHANICAL AND ELECTRICAL ENGINEER
Wsp

ACOUSTIC CONSULTANTS
BRC Acoustics & Audiovisual Design

MANUFACTURERS
Firestone Building Products, Kawneer, Lighting Services, Rigidized Metals Corporation

LEAD ARCHITECTS
Tom Kundig, Faia, Riba, Design Principal; Kirsten R. Murray, Faia, Principal; Kimberly Shoemake-medlock, Project Manager; Thomas Brown, Leed® Ap, Project Manager; Brian Walters, Leed® Ap, Laura Bartunek, Rehanna Rojiani, Architectural Staff; Vikram Sami, Aia, Bemp, Leed® Ap Bd+c, Building Performance; Michelle Arab, Asla, Landscape Architecture

Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider

Text description provided by architect.

The newest addition to Tacoma Art Museum, the Benaroya Wing is a 6,595-square-foot expansion to house the Benaroya Collection, a legacy gift donated to the museum by Rebecca and Jack Benaroya.

The design of the Benaroya Wing balances opacity and transparency to provide optimal viewing conditions for more than 350 works of glass art, paintings and sculpture by Northwest and international artists.

Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider
Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider

The addition also strengthens the visual connection between TAM and the city by activating the north end of the museum and offering a new platform for visitors to observe the urban context from the galleries.

The addition includes 4,800 square feet of new gallery space, which will contain works from the Benaroya Collection as well as rotating special exhibits. Because the Benaroya Collection was originally a privately held collection and contains many glass artworks, the key design strategies were founded around a sensitivity to scale, lighting and protection of the art.

Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider
Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider

The resulting design translates this private collection to a civic-scaled public exhibition forum.

The galleries include flexible exhibit armatures and moveable temporary walls that allow curators to present the collection in multiple ways.

Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider
Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider

In addition to an expanded collection, the Benaroya Wing allows TAM to offer more visibility to the community.

At the far end of the new wing is the Vista Gallery, comprised of a 46-foot-wide window wall projecting six feet out from the building’s face.

Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider
Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider

This window wall overlooks the Prairie Line Trail’s pedestrian and bike paths, and the urban context of the city beyond.

A new illuminated beacon for the museum, the Benaroya Gallery draws the eye and creates a new point of connection between TAM, its collections and the community of Tacoma it serves.

“Traditional thresholds between the museum and the public.

Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider
Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider

The new Vista Gallery is designed to entice people inside to view the Benaroya Collection by offering a peek-a-boo or a look into what’s happening inside the museum.” –Tom Kundig, FAIA, RIBA, Design Principal.


Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider
Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider
Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
© Benjamin Benschneider


Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
Plan 01
Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
Plan 02

Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
Plan 03

Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
Plan 04

Tacoma Art Museum Benaroya Wing
Plan 05

Olson Kundig
T +1 206 6245670 F +1 206 6243730
Olson Kundig
159 S Jackson St # 600, Seattle, WA 98104, United States