BIG architects: kimball art center

'kimball art center' by BIG in park city, utah, usa
all images courtesy BIG


internationally-recognized architecture practice bjarke ingels group has completed a design proposal
of the new kimball art center in park city, utah, usa. drawing from the recent urban development of
the city, the context of the site, and the area's mining heritage, the project seeks to present through
proportions and materiality the history of park city.



aerial view



within context


situated on the intersection of two high-traffic streets - main street and heber avenue - the new
cultural facility is a stacked design that in essence provides two galleries in one structure: the building's
footprint is arranged to meet the city's grid (parallel to main street) while the top gallery aligns itself
with the diagonally-running heber avenue. the resulting form is a building that pivots around to have
two orientations. rising over 24 meters - the same height at which the historical landmark 'coalition building'
stood adjacent to the site - the art center achieves a visually distinct identity at the gateway to the city.



street view during winter


built using heavy timber, the construction method and material references the city's coal mining
history: instead of stacking the wood to create a retaining wall as they did within the mines,
the residential houses inverted this technique and applied it to the outside of the house as the primary
structure. the new kimball art center takes this building method to create a 'highly-evolved log cabin'.
the twisting form carves out the route of the circulation resulting in a continuous spiral staircase
that runs embedded into the timber facade.



interior atrium



ground floor lobby



main staircase



sky gallery



office






night view












(left) existing kimball art center - oriented towards park ave
(right) two new galleries



(upper left) street gallery - oriented to park city's street grid and main street
(upper right) sky gallery - oriented to heber avenue, the gateway to park city
(lower left) unified twist
(lower right) program - between the two galleries are administration and restaurant functions;
the existing building houses the education program and exhibition support functions



underground floor - exhibition, support



ground floor - lobby, assembly, education



second floor - restaurant



third floor - administration



fourth floor - exhibition



roof terrace



model view at night





project info:

client: kimball art center
size: 2,800 m2

partner in charge: bjarke ingels
project leader: leon rost
team: terrence chew, suemin jeon, chris falla, andreia teixeira, ho kyung lee
collaborators: nexus architects, dunn associates, urn boerum & frank associates,
and envision engineering