It’s heralded as one of the major masterpieces of American modernism, but its ocean-adjacent location has made conservation difficult. Today, the Getty Conservation Institute announced that a major renovation project of Louis Kahn ’s Salk Institute in La Jolla has been completed.
The project centered primarily around restoring the complex’s teak window walls. Set within the monolithic concrete walls of the study towers and offices, they had weathered to a non-uniform appearance and were deteriorating. While prefabricated, the windows have a “hand-crafted quality” due to the detailing. Over the years, they suffered surface erosion and had accumulated a fungal biofilm.
“Restoration of the teak wood presented a number of challenges,” says Kyle Normandin, Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc. project manager and associate principal. “The success of the project is that we were able to save so much of the original material.”
The restoration project involved using historical research as well as physical and laboratory analysis. Then, after possible treatments were explored, on-site trial mock-ups were done to evaluate the different treatment options.
setting sun at sprint or fall solstice
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We visited here on our very first studio field trip many (many!) moons ago. The place (buildings and site) left a major and lasting impression.
I was there about a year ago, and the building was wrapped in scaffold. It's good to see the work completed. The restored teak looks really beautiful. One of the touchstones of the aesthetic Kahn created there is the contrast between the cool concrete and the warm, honey colored panels.
As an aside, Louis Barrigan came up with the idea for the water feature. It is oriented exactly 270 degrees so that twice a year, at the spring and autumn solstice, the setting sun is perfectly aligned with the water channel.
I think you mean the spring and autumn equinoxes.
setting sun at sprint or fall solstice
very nice.
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