Modernism Gallery in California by Aidlin Darling Design

Article source: Aidlin Darling Design

The design of the new MODERNISM Gallery seeks to honor both the history of the existing structure and the origins of MODERNISM itself. The new façade of the gallery was inspired by the lithographs of El Lissitsky, one of the first artists to be shown in the revered thirty year history of the Gallery. A series of steel frames, planes, and lines are sculpted to create a large street front viewing portal and the primary entry into the gallery.

View of the new storefront along Ellis Street, Image Courtesy © Aidlin Darling Design

• Architects: Aidlin Darling Design
• Project: Modernism Gallery
• Location: California, USA

Sidewalk to Gallery interior; the Ellis Street entry portal is punctuated by a suspended steel canopy and a crimson door inspired by the lithographs of El Lissitsky, Image Courtesy © Aidlin Darling Design

Within, the design creates a highly intentional and complimentary dialogue between the original structure of board form concrete walls and wood ceiling members, and the new, crisp, white modern planes that define the walls for displaying art. The program is delineated vertically into a public ground floor for the viewing of art and a more intimate second floor mezzanine for offices and more private meetings with art collectors. The ground floor contains two galleries of opposite character. The first, a two story skylit gallery that incorporates mobile walls that can be reconfigured as needed depending on the curator’s vision of the respective exhibit. The second gallery is a much more intimate single story space with sliding walls that reveal hundreds of stored art works which can be retrieved and hung at a moments notice.

The collective result is intended to create a highly inspirational venue for the viewing of experimental art while pioneering one of San Francisco’s up-and-coming art districts.

Interior view looking north through the Gallery; a pair of mobile display walls are free to migrate within the primary volume, modulating its scale and remixing its spatial constitution, Image Courtesy © Aidlin Darling Design

Gallery interior, looking west; a crisp white display wall floats, ribbon-like, in front of the original board-formed concrete walls. This gesture begins at the entry and penetrates through to the back gallery beyond, Image Courtesy © Aidlin Darling Design

The smaller rear Gallery features large sliding walls that can be used for hanging art and concealing works in storage, Image Courtesy © Aidlin Darling Design

Second floor hallway, looking toward the gallery owner’s private office, Image Courtesy © Aidlin Darling Design

Second floor hallway, looking toward entry; clerestory glass atop interior partition walls preserve the visual continuity of the wood ceiling members above, Image Courtesy © Aidlin Darling Design

Gallery interior, looking east; the custom vertical-grain fir and blackened steel reception desk slides past a white display wall for large format works, Image Courtesy © Aidlin Darling Design

A solid fir bench provides a place for repose within the steel frame of the street viewing portal, Image Courtesy © Aidlin Darling Design

Original Ellis Street facade; the building had been vacant for years prior to renovation, Image Courtesy © Aidlin Darling Design

Image Courtesy © Aidlin Darling Design

Tags: California, USA

Categories: Art Gallery, Gallery

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