The Bruce Museum in Greenwich, Connecticut, has shared photos of its recent expansion project that was completed by EskewDumezRipple in April of 2023 at a cost of $67 million.
Drawing inspiration from coastal New England granite quarries, the project added a total of 42,000 square feet via the new William L. Richter Art Wing. The expansion was undertaken to allow the museum’s art and science holdings to expand and be better interpreted as a coherent whole.
The design also created an easier access point to its grounds, replete with an additional landscape component from Reed Hilderbrand.
"We can host the community in a way we’ve never been able to before," the Bruce Museum's Executive Director, Robert Wolterstorff, who is also trained as an architectural historian, explains. "In the past, we had no permanent collections galleries. By adding these spaces, the museum is able to showcase works that local collectors have generously donated, providing the impetus for other collectors to do the same."
Its striated facade is made of pre-cast stone panels that create a laced textural effect to let in light at select points, suffused and refracted on the inside by a frosted interior glass wall finish.
The museum now stands at 70,000 square feet. A double-height lobby space, café, and gift shop welcome visitors into the new wing, which includes an auditorium. Galleries are made flexible to display both the growing permanent collection and a rotation of traveling exhibitions, which have traditionally comprised the museum's public programming.
The design is completed by a courtyard space that connects the new wing, Bruce Park, and the Bruce's original 1853 Victorian-style home into a singular presentation overlooking I-95 and Long Island Sound.
The museum describes: "Within, the connection remains. A courtyard between the existing and new building mirrors the park's verdant beauty, a captured space the design team coined a 'diorama' — an extension of the park into the museum. This green space unfolds elegantly as one enters the lobby, with a sweeping stairway tracing the hill's natural slope to the gallery level above. The result is a design that allows visitors to engage with the regional ecosystem, fostering a profound sense of place."
The design importantly preserves and protects the regional watershed, capable of collecting and reusing 100% of the stormwater on-site. The project was realized with a host of other sustainable credentials, including an overall reduction of Energy Use Intensity 65% greater than what is currently the benchmark for similar buildings in the region.
EskewDumezRipple is currently hiring for a Construction Contract Administrator role and recently debuted another cultural project for the Louisiana Music and Heritage Experience Museum in its home city of New Orleans.
No Comments
Block this user
Are you sure you want to block this user and hide all related comments throughout the site?
Archinect
This is your first comment on Archinect. Your comment will be visible once approved.