The renovation, which began in 2011, was designed to dramatically change the layout of the museum building, which is part of the University of Houston and located on its campus. The building, designed in 1970, hardly corresponded to modern ideas about the museum center: in particular, it was possible to get into it only from the courtyard, and the exhibition halls were located in such a way that the two main ones were separated by a central staircase, and the third could only be accessed through the administrative premises. … To solve these problems, the WORKac bureau was invited.
The architects proposed to reconstruct the northern facade of the modernist building, which until now was almost a blank surface, which does not in any way betray its museum "essence". Partially dismantling this wall, WORKac placed a new staircase there, connecting all levels of the museum and allowing all public areas to be taken outside of the actual galleries. The diagonal of the staircase set the geometry of the entire built-in volume: a spectacular triangular console adorned a previously very laconic building, and it was under the resulting inclined canopy that a new entrance to Bluffer was organized.
In order for the new volume to contrast as much as possible with the concrete walls of the 1970s, the architects faced it with matte and transparent glass panels, creating the feeling of a light translucent curtain, behind which the silhouettes of people and objects can only be guessed. But the triangular support that supports the console and serves as a place for the museum logo, WORKac, on the contrary, is made of raw concrete - as conceived by the authors, this element serves as a kind of sign of respect for the style of modernism.
In addition to the stairs and ticket offices, there is a cafe in the new entrance area. In addition, by entering the museum through the new entrance, visitors can walk through the building and enter the courtyard of the university campus.
A. M.
