Ellipsis / Washington, DC
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Museum Renovation Invited Competition
2013 / 7,000 sq. ft.
Ellipsis reinvents the Grand Salon of the Smithsonian
American Art Museum’s Renwick Gallery as an engaging public interior, diminishing
the boundaries between the city and museum interior. The contemporary
renovation has been carefully designed to coexist with, rather than replace,
the historic structure, creating a dialogue between past and present.
A plane of polished metal hovers above the main stairs,
producing mirror images of the activity below and generating new, unexpected
views into the Salon. Inside the Salon, two elliptical voids, connected by a
screen of digitally-manufactured ceramic panels, form a new ceiling, suspended
above the public. The original structure remains visible though this twisting
screen, torqueing one’s perception of the historic space. The Grand Salon is
transformed into an informal collective space, encouraging visitors to
socialize and contemplate.
Although the Grand Salon is fully interior and its skylight
was covered up long ago, Ellipsis imparts the space with an interior atmosphere
that connects with the outdoors. Computer controlled LED lighting, radiating
from the surface of the artificial skylight and reflecting off the ceramic
curves, evokes the the changing light of the daily sky. This light gradually transitions
color and intensity — from a warm morning glow, which grows brighter in the
afternoon, to a cool shade of indigo at dusk — producing new shared experiences
of well-being upon each visit.
Project Team: Phu Hoang, Rachely Rotem, Amanda Morgan, Dorimar del Rio Project Credits: L’Observatoire (Lighting Design)
Project Team: Phu Hoang, Rachely Rotem, Amanda Morgan, Dorimar del Rio Project Credits: L’Observatoire (Lighting Design)