STOREFRONT FOR ART & ARCHITECTURE

Payton Mincey

ARCH 7002

LSU

Spring 2011

S T E V E N H O L L & V I T O AC C O N C I , 1 9 9 3

CONCEPTUAL GOALS

Accentuate the extended triangular gallery’s most dominant feature: its façade

Reflect historical evolution of exhibitions as evidenced by cuts and paint layers in the building’s façade

Puncture and unseal this facade and thereby integrate the art and design realm into the cityscape to reach unlikely patrons

Introduce variability and motion in the gallery which is generally static

CONCEPTUAL SOLUTION

• Make a series of cuts, vertically and horizontally, into the façade in panels• Extend and merge the gallery space into the sidewalk by pivoting the

panels

The gallery is located on a major downtown street in New York City between three radically different cultural sectors: Chinatown Little Italy, and Soho

THE DIVERSE SITE

THE OPEN CIRCULATION

• Passerby catch glimpses into the gallery• Multiple entries and views increase the chance of pedestrians touring

the gallery • Light, sounds, culture, weather, the very atmosphere of the city,

infiltrates the gallery environ and vice-versa

PROGRAMMATIC ORGANIZATION

A triangular ground-level space nearly 100 feet long, the gallery tapers from 20 feet to 3 feet at its west end

Pie-shaped in plan, the design opens to the street on one façade while the other wall is used for display

PROGRAMMATIC ORGANIZATION

• The narrow, long space is the gallery, while the wider area is used for an office and storage.

STRUCTURAL ELEVATION

STRUCTURAL PLAN

MATERIALS CONTRAST OLD AND NEW

• Twelve hinged panels are made of concrete mixed with recycled fibers, Supraboard (now fibreC), and faced with metal reveals

MATERIALS CONTRAST OLD AND NEW

• Gallery space walls are in white gypsum board

• Interior remnants of the structure's old uses are preserved in the columns, floor and ceiling

TECTONICS

TECTONICS

• The panels opened can become windows, doors, tables, and seats and invite a dialogue between the city and gallery

TECTONICS

With the panels in closed positions, the light filtering through the incisions reinforces the gallery’s restrictive mode.In this state, it has been likened to a fortress.

POST-DESIGN COMMENTARY

•  The façade design was meant to last for two years, but underscored the building’s importance as an architectural landmark in New York City; after 15 years it underwent restoration in the summer of 2008.

• With a meager budget of $45,000 it was named by Vanity Fair as “one of the 14 most influential independent art spaces in the US.”

• Many artists and architects have decided to create installations specific to the Storefront. This may be because it is difficult to decide between paying attention to the work displayed or the panels.