EDUCATION CENTER
THE RUBIN MUSEUM OF ART
New York, NY
The Education Center at the Rubin Museum of Art has greatly expanded the reach and capabilities of the western world’s premier museum of Himalayan art. Occupying the lower and street levels of a converted industrial loft building, the Center provides the Museum with classrooms, gathering spaces, workshop areas, and spaces for lectures, presentations, and events. Displays of art from the Rubin collections appear throughout the Center, encouraging associations between education and creativity.
Services
Architecture
Interior Design
Construction Administration
Size
5,100 sf
ARTISTIC DESIGNS
Designs for the Center draw inspiration from the Rubin’s art collection. Colors are warm, and materials are natural and soft in tone. In the entry area, an admissions desk curves towards an art display wall composed of undulating wooden bands. An elliptical stair wrapped in a translucent photo montage of Tibetan prayer flags connects the two floors and also unifies the Center with the Rubin Museum, which is located in a separate building on the same city block.
FLEXIBLE AND SUSTAINABLE
Distinct volumes are painted in singular hues, playfully defining the Center’s main spaces. Modular furniture allows for flexibility in the Center’s programming. Sustainable solutions, including bamboo flooring and ice stone counters, are integrated into the design.
“SKOLNICK performs elegant and imaginative work, even under constraints such as challenging construction management and shifting budgetary considerations. In adapting a small, run-down space into our beautifully designed education center they managed to realize a unique and specific request into a fulfilling vision and a practical reality. Their work proved consistently fine and remarkably adaptive.
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