(N)QMA

The New Queens Museum of Art was a competition entry in response to a call to expand the existing museum, and at the same time to radically rethink its position within the universe of other museums. The brief required the addition of new galleries, classrooms and administrative spaces to be located in one half of the existing building, opposite the panorama model of Manhattan that was made for the 1964 World’s Fair Exhibition. The (N)QMA seeks to reposition the museum less as a conservator of the past, and more as a proactive participant in the formulation of culture. Three distintly different floors of space organize the building, spliced together with the existing space by a new entry ramp. The lowest floor, or “fast floor”, is characterized as a single, uninterrupted space that would allow for a wide array of exhibitions and events. The second floor, or “campus floor”, intermingles curators, children’s workshops, lectures, and galleries, provoking new relationships between parts otherwise treated discreetly. Finally, the roof garden is positioned as an outdoor sculpture gallery and viewing platform, punctuated by large wells that interconnect the various floors in new and dynamic ways.