The Crocker Art Museum in California is planning to develop a three acre “multi-functional civic space” at Crocker Park, just north of the museum in Sacramento.
The Seattle-based Olson Kundig has been chosen as lead architect. OK will partner with San Francisco-based landscape architects Surfacedesign Inc.
The Crocker Art Museum has received over 50 submissions from architects around the world. Olson Kundig and Surfacedesign were selected unanimously by the committee which included museum board members, staff, design professionals, and community leaders.
This new plan is to transform Crocker Park into a public, art-focused gathering place. There will be multi-level parking, and gallery, event, and programme space.
The aim of the park is to integrate the new area seamlessly with the museum’s existing buildings. It will complete the campus and provide the opportunity for new, immersive, art experiences.
Olson Kundig and SURFACEDESIGN’s proposal shows the extension as a porous structure, blurring the lines that demarcate the museum’s indoor and outdoor space. The architects took inspiration from Sacramento’s agriculture and the city’s tapestry of trees.
The Crocker Art Museum is the longest continuously-operating art museum in the Western States. The Crocker Park is expected to offer a new model for the interaction of regional art institutions with the local community. The project is set to connect the Crocker to the downtown area, the Sacramento riverfront, and West Sacramento.
Tags: culture tourism, Museum, spaces
