Building the Museum

An interior view of the Great Hall, looking north toward the dining bridge that will house Eleven, the Museum's restaurant.A view of the Great Hall from pond level. The large concrete piers that anchor the roof cables will be largely underwater when the pond is filled. The darker gray that is visible here on the building's base indicates the future water level.Looking upward from pond level at the roof of the Great Hall.A view of the interior of the dining bridge, now nearly complete, from the Museum's main lobby.A sneak peek at the view that diners at Eleven, the Museum's restaurant, will enjoy. This is the north view from the dining bridge, in which the gallery bridge can be seen, as well as the lower pond and gallery pavilions.A close look at the complex hardware required to connect roof beams, bridge cable, and windows. The large windows of the Museum's bridges must be able to move slightly in their settings with the slight movement of the bridge itself. This required special hardware and flexible junctions. The lower pond from the dining bridge as the bottom is being prepared for installation of a geosynthetic clay liner.A worker finishes the oak floors in the gallery bridge.  Two box-shaped galleries inside the bridge will house artwork and protect them from sunlight. The glass walls will allow visitors views of the north lawn and lower pond.Interior of one of the galleries that will house Twentieth Century art. Note the use of the same yellow pine roof beams that can be seen in the bridges and Great Hall. In the galleries, however, the curve is inverted.The courtyard outside the Museum's main entrance will eventually feature an outdoor sculpture at its center. To the right is the Museum Store, which will have a green roof planted with native roses. To the left is the entrance to the main lobby.A view of the rooftops of the Museum's lobby, bridges and galleries from the elevator tower at the main entrance. Note that the bright color of the copper on the gallery bridge (at the top of the picture) is already beginning to patina to a deep brown. Compare it to the more recently installed roof on the dining bridge to the left.

Construction Photos Archive

Building Layout

Observation Deck



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