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Those renderings are very sexy. This project looks like an absolute delight and, as the Chronicle article suggests, will help the MFAH act as a nice bridge between the Museum District and Rice. 

 

now if we can continue to bridge the gap between the museum district and midtown and midtown into downtown....

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Agree Sparrow.  Assuming this is open to the public, which I expect that it will be, The Glassell will definitely become an favorite icon for the city.  Makes the Museum buildings and Sculpture Garden feel a part of the Park.  This feature alone will pull a lot of people to the Museum District...even if they don't visit any of the museums. 

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I think this will most likely (pending how it looks as-built) be the biggest thing to happen to Houston architecturally in 30 years. It finally gives to our current (now fading) boom era the entry into the realm of elevated, soul-moving architecture that it has so far been missing, respectable designs by Pickard Chilton and others notwithstanding.

 

I only feel a sense of regret for my children. Their college savings will take a hit when I donate to this thing.

 

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I appreciate the slope on the Glassell not blocking the charming steeple of the First Presbyterian Church from the intersection of Montrose @ Bissonnet. Should make for an interesting photo op. The roof should also provide a unique view looking south towards Lindsey Plaza and the Obelisk. Who has a good Lens?

 

Thanks for the photos cloud!

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Cloud713 thanks for getting into the press conference and getting those images of the plans and other things that weren't in the Chronicle.

I liked what Mr. Tinterow said about his concern to produce the best space in the world to view art. His concern about lighting is very important .

Bravo !

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Heh, it was a little tricky. Seemed like parts of the museum were open for business but all the entrances around the van der Rohe buikding had staff standing outside and even police at the main entrance under a temporary tent/awning. We snuck down into the Cafe Express entrance from the street level and filed in line with a tour group and proceeded to follow them past a few staff members through the Turrell Tunnel and popped up into the other building where everything was at. Lol..

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Heh, it was a little tricky. Seemed like parts of the museum were open for business but all the entrances around the van der Rohe buikding had staff standing outside and even police at the main entrance under a temporary tent/awning. We snuck down into the Cafe Express entrance from the street level and filed in line with a tour group and proceeded to follow them past a few staff members through the Turrell Tunnel and popped up into the other building where everything was at. Lol..

 

cloud713 wins the "stealth haifer" of the year award!!  awesome!  thank you thank you!

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This is fantastic!  Will like to see more accurate renderings - though this is a Holl design, it'll probably be all wispy and foggy in appearance upon completion!  Like Lake+Flato's design too, given the context I'd say its a nice addition.  That and I understand the MFA has an undersized restoration area so this should bode them well.

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It's funny because I've always kinda thought of Steven Holl as Gehry-lite which is perfect for our city with buildings that try not to offend. Great selection of architects for this. As soon as I saw the name I knew this was in good hands. Was very surprised by the Lake | Flato design. I didn't even know they were a part of this whole scheme. Awesome stuff by them as well. They are really making a nice statement in this town so good for them, but if Lake | Flato was the opening act, Steven Holl is the big show. He is the quintessential architect of his generation (at least at his level) and always made statements with his architecture. I know he is very popular at my office as I've seen a few of the designers with Steven Holl books of his earlier works on their desks! It's certainly a bold design, but as seen from that night illustration it easily slips right into place. The roof sorta gives the whole building a carved stone type of look like the slopes on top were chiseled from the greater whole. It's more of an accent, but its a great detail. The building I'm most curious about is the new Glassell school! I had no idea they were going to redevelop that area as well and its actually the one that steals the show. The walkable roof from ground floor to terrace is something that is very popular in contemporary architecture and it's almost in every architecture student project, but to actually see it being executed in this city is simply amazing and will be the talk of the town for sure! Just the view alone....I can't wait! Sometimes in as architects especially us young architects we want to go out and just do the most crazy thing ever because surely that will start the next great revolution, but sometimes it more subtle and interesting to just give the scene a slight nudge. This does that. People have been throwing the word game changer, but I look at it more as sort of those life moment markers you see on facebook. This is this moment in Houston's life. It's a 'moment'. yeah not as sexy as gamechanger, but it really is a moment. The moment where Houston matured just a little bit more and grew up just a little bit more. Hopefully it goes even further than that.

 

So if it wasn't obvious from the statement above, I really love the design. Would like to see further info on this and maybe some more interior renders, but I'm definitely impressed. Lets go gaga over this and not the most underwhelming reveal of the day *cough*Amegy 20 story nothing that could be built anywhere in america therefore it's nothing very special and it's just a plain glass building with horns *cough*

 

P.S. Awesome inside work Cloud. Some news program needs to grab you dude! You do better investigative journalism than most. Great images and were far more interesting than just the renders. The models really add context and give the building more character.

Edited by Luminare
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thanks again guys.. it was pretty fun and i was pleased there was additional information posted. a press photographer kept taking pictures of me admiring the model/taking pictures of it, so who knows.. maybe ill end up in published photos attached to an article about the expansion. ive got to admit. i dont think ive ever bumped into a billionaire before tonight.. much less the richest man in Houston (lol, i backed/stood up to adjust when trying to get a close up of the model and it was Rich Kinder [the guy i overheard being told "theres your building".. i googled all the notable people after i got back from the event and realized who a few of them were] that i kind of brushed arms with. he was totally cool and after i tried to back away and let the museum guy continue with his little guided tour/presentation of the model for Kinder, Rich insisted i get the photo i was trying to take).

btw, since my pictures werent that great.. it was all set up in the front/Binz entrance to the van der Rohe building and for all i know the model/renderings might stay there for a little while if anyone is in the neighborhood and wants to drop by to see/snap some better photos of everything now that all the press/donors/architects arent crowding the room.

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 ive got to admit. i dont think ive ever bumped into a billionaire before tonight.. much less the richest man in Houston (lol, i backed/stood up to adjust when trying to get a close up of the model and it was Rich Kinder [the guy i overheard being told "theres your building".. i googled all the notable people after i got back from the event and realized who a few of them were] that i kind of brushed arms with. he was totally cool and after i tried to back away and let the museum guy continue with his little guided tour/presentation of the model for Kinder, Rich insisted i get the photo i was trying to take).

 

Sounds like he's kinder than most billionaires.

 

I had a similar experience with his wife one time. She was heading the committee to design Discovery Green and there was a solicitation for public input, so I sent in an e-mail describing an idea. The next morning she forwarded the e-mail to everyone on the committee (copying me) and gushed about how excited she was reading the description. The idea wasn't used, but it made an impression on me.

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Complete schedule:

 

Kinder Building (the new exhibition/restaurant/theater building):  Construction takes place 2017-2019

Glassell School of Art and the Bown Foundation Plaza:  Construction takes place summer 2015-2017

The Sarah Campbell Blaffer Foundation Center for Conservation:  Construction takes place 2016-2017

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I'm delighted to see a conservation center is part of the plan. MFAH once owned a handsome Carl Milles fountain that suffered internal damage due to corrosion and was no longer on view. According to a former museum staffer, "no one could be found to repair it. so they got rid of it". I've always wondered if this is true, or if it still languishes in a dusty storeroom corner somewhere.

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What will be great for this building is to help relieve the Mies Addition from having to rotate different collections. From what I have read it's always been a challenging environment to house art especially if it doesn't work with the space. Maybe once this building is finished they won't be pressured to figure out how to fill the Mies Addition with rotating collections and instead start selecting more permanent pieces to fill the galleries that also complement the buildings vast spaces.

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This was an announcement from Ellen Cohen today:

Council approved an Economic Development Agreement, also known as a “380 agreement," between the City of Houston and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH). Thisagreement allows the City to give a portion of Roseland St. (between Barkdull St. and Berthea St.) to MFAH in exchange for an expanded public Sculpture Garden which will be maintained by the museum. MFAH is currently undergoing a privately funded $350 million expansion which will include new space for galleries, an auditorium, a restaurant, a new building for the Glassell School of Art (including a walkable green roof), a conservation center, an underground parking garage, and the expanded sculpture plaza.

My question is does the MFAH own the property to the north of the Glassel all the way to Barkdull along Montrose?

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That's a museum parking lot.. Right?

No, actually I drove by there yesterday and its got two 30's brick apartment houses on it so I can see that the MFAH probably does own this and will start the Glassell farther North

than the existing Glassell.

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What will be great for this building is to help relieve the Mies Addition from having to rotate different collections. From what I have read it's always been a challenging environment to house art especially if it doesn't work with the space. Maybe once this building is finished they won't be pressured to figure out how to fill the Mies Addition with rotating collections and instead start selecting more permanent pieces to fill the galleries that also complement the buildings vast spaces.

 

It would be interesting to hear what local architects think of the Mies Addition.  Back in the 80s (I think) MFAH had a director with distinguished credentials, but who apparently hated it ... I remember that he compared it to an airport terminal.

 

I didn't like hearing that, but perhaps he had a point.  Despite that, I always liked the view of the facade from the street, very Miesian international style, good to have an example of that in Houston.  

 

I wonder how many people know that the current "Mies Addition" actually extended an earlier one.  As I recall, the earlier one was similar but set back further from the street, with white-painted steel instead of black.

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I like the Mies Addition.  While not his greatest work, its still Mies.  I mean Frank Lloyd Wright didn't design Fallingwater every day, but his work still trumps 99.999999% of all others.  Even his throwaway work.

 

Its kind of funny - we may finally see the Mies addition(s) used in the manner that they were probably intended when Mies designed them back in the 50s and 70s.

Edited by arche_757
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... Its kind of funny - we may finally see the Mies addition(s) used in the manner that they were probably intended when Mies designed them back in the 50s and 70s.

 

Good to get some feedback!  How do you think they were intended differently than we see them now?

 

I don't really know the sequence of events, but my recollection is that the current Mies facade was a design that was not implemented until years later (after his death).

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