The Milwaukee Art Museum's new addition,
October 10, 2001 2:45 PM   Subscribe

The Milwaukee Art Museum's new addition, designed by Santiago Calatrava, is opening this weekend. They tested the wings yesterday and it looks like it's gonna be pretty dang cool. (Flash slideshow. Worth it.)
posted by mimi (9 comments total)
 
I pride myself on my geographic knowledge... so I'm pretty embarrassed to say that I'd always thought Milwaukee was landlocked. So until I'd seen the harbor shots, I couldn't quite understand the nautical theme. Crazy.

So now that I'm past that, I'll throw in my 2 cents: it looks spindly, unsubstantial. I much prefer the modernism of Gehry or even IM Pei to this. Of course, I've never been a fan of the genre, so the substantive and thoughtful approaches of these greats appeal to my traditional sensibilities (some of the time, at least).

Great link, though, mimi... Thanks!
posted by silusGROK at 3:05 PM on October 10, 2001


Pretty, but I like the simple beauty of his bridges better. Thanks for the link.
posted by machaus at 3:07 PM on October 10, 2001


I've been following the saga of this addition since they started talking about it in the early 90s. It's a beautiful building. One can only hope it'll help people get past the perception that Milwaukee is only about beer, brats and bowling. It’s also worth noting that the original building was designed by some guy named Eero Saarinen, who, among other things, designed a little metal arch down in Saint Louis.
posted by mrbula at 3:08 PM on October 10, 2001


Gehry? But Milwaukee already has enough tinfoil...
posted by mrbula at 3:11 PM on October 10, 2001


Oh, oh, oh, I am so excited! I live and work in downtown Milwaukee and I've been watching the progress every day for over a year. I got to see the Quadracci Pavilion when the O'Keeffe exhibit was here and it's simply beautiful inside.

Milwaukee is only about beer, brats and bowling

Don't forget the Packers! I should post pictures of the various Packer-themed houses on Milwaukee's east side.
posted by phooey at 3:22 PM on October 10, 2001


Like machaus, I like his bridges, too. There's one in Bilbao, a single span pedestrian bridge, that has translucent glass bricks for walking and it makes for a wild experience to walk it at night.
posted by mmarcos at 3:24 PM on October 10, 2001


It looks like it is pining to join its alterego .
posted by caraig at 3:51 PM on October 10, 2001


His bridges are fascinating. For years he has been speaking of "living" buildings; buildings that react to their ever changing environments. This project gets him one step closer to achieving his dream.

BTW, He recently designed a bridge for the City of Dallas's Trinity River Expansion, and Wow!!!! (go about half way down the page for pics)
posted by Benway at 4:18 PM on October 10, 2001


Private funds have been raised in Dallas to fund one bridge across the Trinity as the City Council and it's mayor Captain Kirk think it is OK to give money to millionaires to build the American Airlines Arena and to support a bid for the 2012 Olympics but don't think its reasonable to spend those dollars connecting the Northern and Southern half of the city. I personally look forward to the bridge.
posted by sierray at 7:56 PM on October 10, 2001


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