The Corning Museum of Glass Contemporary Art + Design Wing provides 100,000 square feet of new space, including 26,000 square feet of spacious light-filled galleries for its collection of contemporary works in glass, as well as one of the world’s largest facilities for glassblowing demonstrations and live glass design sessions.
The new gallery building—which is the largest space anywhere dedicated to the presentation of contemporary art in glass—features skylighting with a sophisticated light-filtering system that is integrated with the structural roof beams.
Inside, the works of art are displayed largely independent of the curvilinear plaster walls, encouraging circulation and allowing contemplation of larger works in glass. The gallery experience is punctuated by a 150-foot-long window that provides views to the campus green and reorients the visitor to the larger landscape.
The clean white glass façade of the new contemporary gallery building is juxtaposed with the black exterior of the restored Steuben Glass factory building. The project features outdoor gathering areas for the public, including a one-acre campus green that provides views into the luminous new gallery and glassmaking spaces.
The new campus green is bordered by the 1951 Harrison & Abramowitz Corning office building, the 2001 Smith-Miller Hawkinson façade, and the Contemporary Art + Design Wing.
The design includes an innovative renovation of the former Steuben Glass factory adjacent to the museum’s current building. The renovation provides seating for 500 people, offering 360-degree views of glassmaking in a new state-of-the-art Amphitheater Hot Shop.
Project Details:
Location: Corning, New York, USA
Type: Cultural
Area: 100,000 sf
Architects: Thomas Phifer and Partners
Project Team: Thomas Phifer, Gabriel Smith, Adam Ruffin, Katie Bennett, Remon Alberts, Bethany Mahre, Brad Cooke, Mo Gagnon, Gerry Gendreau, Eric Ho, Isaiah King, Brad Kingsley, Joanna Luo, Stephen Varady, Colin Ward
Photographs: Iwan Baan
