Cincinnati Art Museum Announces Short List of Architects

CINCINNATI.- The Board of the Cincinnati Art Museum today announced the short list of architecture firms selected as candidates to work with the Museum on the development of a new design and on the reconfiguration of its campus in the city’s Eden Park. Chosen under the leadership of Director Aaron Betsky, the four firms are:

• Diller Scofidio + Renfro (New York)
• Neutelings Riedijk (Rotterdam)
• Smith-Miller & Hawkinson (New York)
• UNStudio (Amsterdam)

The Museum will select the project architect later this summer. The Cincinnati Art Museum opened in 1881, and during its 126-year-history has grown from a single building to a complex of seven individual, interconnected structures; these various wings were designed by a series of architects in a variety of styles. The new project will integrate these disparate structures into a unified and cohesive whole, combining innovative new design with a thoughtful and liberating reuse of the Museum’s existing spaces. The new Cincinnati Art Museum will provide greater access to its outstanding collection and significantly enhance its public programming and the institution’s ability to serve as an educational resource for the community.

“We selected this short list of architects because each firm has demonstrated the unusual ability both to create iconic new designs and to respond with exceptional sensitivity and ingenuity to historic buildings, their surroundings, and complex existing building layouts,” said Director Aaron Betsky. “The new Cincinnati Art Museum will engage its Eden Park setting in new ways and honor its history while also looking to the future of architecture, art, and design. We plan to reuse where possible, make what is new practical and spectacular, expand where necessary, and improve throughout.”

The project is a further development of the facilities master plan adopted by the Museum in 2006. That plan was prepared with analysis and feedback from museum and arts professionals nation-wide along with the Cincinnati community, which will continue to be involved in the planning process. The new Museum will provide a more welcoming and engaging experience for visitors and place an even greater emphasis on educational programming. It will have a more intuitive internal flow and more exhibition space for its outstanding collection, which includes more than 60,000 works spanning 6,000 years. The new design will also allow the Museum to expand its special exhibitions program and present more contemporary art in all media. The Museum is investigating ways of sharing its collections in new ways such as an “open storage” facility where visitors can see and learn more about works that were formerly not accessible to the public. The new Museum will also be better integrated into Eden Park and will provide much-needed parking services for visitors.

Betsky has further evolved the 2006 facilities master plan, enabling the Museum to preserve and renovate the Art Academy of Cincinnati’s former building—designed by the same firm that created the Museum’s first building—to house a variety of Museum operations. Although the expansion planning is in its early stages and will continue to progress over the course of the design process, the Museum anticipates the project will add a minimum of 50,000 square feet of new construction. The project budget, which will include funds both to complete construction and increase the Museum’s endowment, will be developed as planning progresses.

“Aaron Betsky has an exceptional knowledge of the best of national and international architecture and design, and an unmistakably genuine and deeply felt commitment to connecting people with art, design, and architecture in ways that enrich their daily lives,” said J. Philip Vollmer, president of the board of trustees of the Cincinnati Art Museum. “We are energized and inspired to be collaborating with such visionary architecture firms to plan for the institution’s future. I speak for the entire board when I say this process builds wonderfully on our master plan. This project will make a great contribution to the city of Cincinnati and to the arts community nationally and internationally.”