Stone & Feather: Steven Holl Architects / Nelson-Atkins Museum Expansion

by Jeffrey Kipnis, Marc F. Wilson (Introduction)

A new paradigm for the twenty-first-century museum from renowned architect Steven Holl. Museums have become the preeminent building type for the expression of new architectural ideas. Holl's expansion of the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art achieves a fusion of architecture with landscape that redefines the boundaries of the museum-going experience while creating one of the most unorthodox and breathtakingly beautiful examples of recent museum design. Holl's structure emerges from the landscape as five interconnected glass structures or "lenses," which both draw light into the building and serve to accentuate the museum's sculpture garden, providing both new spaces and angles of vision. Executed through close collaboration with museum curators and artists, the building achieves a dynamic and supportive relationship between art and architecture. Combining an in-depth critical assessment by the eminent architectural historian Jeffrey Kipnis, a generous selection of the architect's preliminary watercolor studies for the museum expansion, and breathtaking photography, this volume will be an essential reference for anyone concerned with the future of architecture and museum design.

208 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2007

Reviews

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kipnis's essay is refreshing. I feared there would be a sort of degrading of the oringinal Nelson building, but instead, he acknowledges its significance and focuses on how the Bloch Building defers to the original. His analysis of the addition is a well thought and interesting read.