Centro Botín

Centro Botín; photo by Enrico Cano, courtesy of Centro Botín
Centro Botín; photo by Enrico Cano, courtesy of Centro Botín

In Santander, about 60 miles west of Bilbao on Spain’s north coast, the new Centro Botín opened on Friday, June 23. The waterfront arts center was designed by Renzo Piano as a new regional museum along with the redevelopment of an urban park.

Continue reading “Centro Botín”

The New SFMOMA

Exterior view of the new SFMOMA, designed by Snøhetta; image © Henrik Kam, courtesy of SFMOMA
Exterior view of the new SFMOMA, designed by Snøhetta; image © Henrik Kam, courtesy of SFMOMA

After a three-year expansion and renovation, the new San Francisco Museum of Modern Art opened to the public this weekend. The museum has more than doubled in size and is now the largest modern and contemporary art museum in the US.

Continue reading “The New SFMOMA”

Guggenheim Helsinki Design Revealed

Rendering of the winning design by Moreau Kusunoki Architects for the Guggenheim Helsinki Design Competition; image by artefactorylab, courtesy of Moreau Kusunoki Architects / Guggenheim Helsinki Design Competition
Rendering of the winning design by Moreau Kusunoki Architects for the Guggenheim Helsinki Design Competition; image by artefactorylab, courtesy of Moreau Kusunoki Architects / Guggenheim Helsinki Design Competition

The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation has announced that Moreau Kusunoki Architectes is the winner of the Guggenheim Helsinki Design Competition. The French architecture firm’s design, Art in the City, is proposed for a site at Eteläsatama on Helsinki’s South Harbor. The Finnish outpost would be the Guggenheim’s fifth museum, and its third in Europe, if it is constructed.

Continue reading “Guggenheim Helsinki Design Revealed”

Harvard Art Museums

exterior view of the Harvard Art Museums; photo by Nic Lehoux
exterior view of the Harvard Art Museums; photo by Nic Lehoux

It has been a great few weeks – indeed, a great year – for new museum buildings. It gets even better this weekend when the Harvard Art Museums will open a new building. The incredible structure, designed by Renzo Piano, unites Harvard’s three separate museums under a vast glass roof.

Continue reading “Harvard Art Museums”

R4, Île Seguin

North elevation of R4, R4 application for planning permission dossier, © Ateliers Jean Nouvel
North elevation of R4, R4 application for planning permission dossier, © Ateliers Jean Nouvel

In Boulogne-Billancourt, a western suburb of Paris, an island in the Seine is being developed into an “artistic micro-city” designed by Jean Nouvel. The project for Île Seguin will create artists’ studios, commercial gallery and auction spaces, an exhibition hall, and a conference center to transform the island into a modern cultural hub.

Continue reading “R4, Île Seguin”

Guggenheim Helsinki? Not so fast…

Guggenheim Helsinki design competition, view of Helsinki's waterfront; image via ArchDaily
Guggenheim Helsinki design competition, view of Helsinki’s waterfront; image via ArchDaily

Last month, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and Helsinki city officials announced an international design competition for a proposed new museum in the Finnish capital. The Guggenheim proposal has been met with disapproval in Helsinki since 2011, and there is no certainty that the design competition will gain public support for the project.

Continue reading “Guggenheim Helsinki? Not so fast…”