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Snøhetta shares updated construction photos for El Paso Children's Museum

2024-07-12T11:20:00-04:00

The El Paso Children's Museum in Texas from Snøhetta and Exigo Architecture is advancing toward completion later this summer. The four-story, 70,000-square-foot museum is part of El Paso’s Downtown Arts District and will serve the community as its first purpose-built children's museum when it officially opens to the public on August 10th.

Snøhetta says: "The development of La Nube — Spanish for ‘the cloud’ — was directly influenced by input from the community. During the master planning process, a recurring theme was 'Blue Sky Thinking.' The sky is limitless, undefined by borders and holds clouds that can take an infinite number of shapes. The sky connects us all, regardless of culture, language, age, or ability."

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Snøhetta (@snohetta)

The design utilizes repeated barrel vaults and a glass-wrapped rectilinear base to create a "cloud-like" composition distinct from the apparent firmament and mix of corporate architecture b...

Snøhetta's 'whimsical children's museum' takes shape in El Paso

2024-04-02T11:52:00-04:00

New construction photographs published by Snøhetta via social media show substantial progress on the El Paso Children's Museum, designed with Exigo Architecture.

We first reported on the scheme in 2018 when Snøhetta won the competition for the project. In 2020, the firm unveiled a completed design for the 70,000-square-foot museum, which will sit in El Paso's Downtown Arts district.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Snøhetta (@snohetta)

Through an unorthodox use of geometries, the building seeks to distinguish itself from the rest of the local skyline. The rectilinear base is wrapped in glass, allowing for natural light and interior views for the public on the outside. A succession of barrel vaults, visible in the construction photographs, add a rhythmic quality to the structure.

Snøhetta unveils playful design for the El Paso Children's Museum

2020-10-06T08:44:00-04:00

After winning the competition for the new El Paso Children's Museum, Snøhetta has unveiled its playful and adventurous design for the city's new educational center. The 70,000 sf museum is set within the heart of El Paso's Downtown Arts district. Through an unorthodox use of geometries, the building distinguishes itself from the rest of the local skyline.

The rectilinear base is wrapped in glass, allowing for plenty of natural light and interior views for the public on the outside. A succession of barrel vaults add a rhythmic quality to the structure that seems to represent a "cloud-like crown."

Outdoor public amenities such as streetscapes, gathering areas, and gardens have also been introduced to the new museum to take advantage of El Paso's sunny climate. At the eastern end of the building, a terraced "discovery garden" creates a series of outdoor rooms, each with one-of-a-kind atmospheres to explore.

The first floor includes free exhibitions and a cafe accompanies by the entranc...

El Paso, laser scanned in 3D

2013-05-16T14:23:00-04:00

Robert González wants to create a 3D digital replica of Downtown El Paso, using lasers. The director of Texas Tech’s fledgling architecture program in El Paso says the student project would be part of a new historic preservation program he is developing here. The project would create a permanent record, in 3D, of El Paso’s most historic and endangered buildings.

An exhibition of 3D captured border cities from around the world projected onto giant scrims filling an abandoned maquilladora, might be an interesting project.