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read journals | scope
of project | factsheet | timeline
At
a Glance
| Architect |
The
Polshek Partnership, based in New York City, is one
of the most exciting architecture firms working in the US today.
Some of their recent and current projects include the universally
lauded Rose
Planetarium at New York City's American Museum of Natural
History, the Clinton
Presidential Library in Little Rock, Arkansas, and the Iris
and B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts at Stanford
University. |
| Schedule |
The
project began in 1998 with a feasibility study by the New York
City firm Kliment and Halsband. The Fine Arts Center closed
in December 1999 and will reopen to students and the general
public in early 2003. Click
here for more details. |
| History |
This
will be the fifth building to house the art department and museum
of art since the founding of Smith College in 1875. For a brief
history of the Fine Arts Center buildings, click
here. |
| Scale |
The
renovation and expansion will transform all interior and exterior
elements of the complex; modernize mechanical, climate control,
storage, and media/information systems; and significantly expand
the museum's gallery space. For a brief project summary, click
here. |
| Budget |
At
$35 million, the Fine Arts Center renovation and expansion
is the most ambitious capital project in the history of Smith
College. The
project is being funded entirely by donations from alumnae
and other friends of the museum and art department.
|
| Exhibitions
|
While
it is closed, the museum continues to provide an art presence
on the Smith College campus with outdoor sculpture exhibitions
like Bronze Stone & Steel and Paradise
Gate. Highlights of the collections are touring the
United States and overseas in three
touring shows. For information on upcoming exhibitions when
the museum reopens, click
here. |
FAQs
| Why
is the project taking so long to complete? |
Almost
every system and structural element of the Fine Arts Center
will be changed, updated, or replaced (as you can see from photo
images and on-site viewing). There is a huge amount of infrastructure
work—heating, ventilating and air conditioning, and rewiring—that
needs to be done. Demolition was slowed by the discovery of
asbestos, which has now been removed. The art department is
scheduled to occupy its renovated space by the beginning of
the fall semester 2002, which is a very ambitious goal. After
the art department reopens, attention will focus on testing
the climate control system of the museum. When it has run effectively
for a minimum of three months, the collection will be reinstalled
and the museum will reopen to the public. The target date for
reopening to the general public is spring 2003. |
| Why
was the renovation and expansion necessary at this time? |
There
were a number of issues that needed to be addressed in the
pre-renovated FAC. These include:
- Continued
problems with the "envelope" of the building.
- Lack
of safe levels of ventilation in the art studios.
- Overflow
of art storage and library storage.
- The
need for new wiring to accommodate computer based learning
technologies.
- The
need for additional office space for both the art department
and the museum staff.
- The
need for expanded gallery space so that more of the permanent
collection could be on view on an ongoing basis (even when
special exhibitions are installed).
- The
need to comply with ADA and fire safety regulations.
- The
need to upgrade the climate control system in the museum
for proper storage and preservation of the art.
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