DECEMBER 2015 \ BUILDING DIALOGUE \
19
DYNAMIC DUO.
COLORADO SPRINGS • DENVER • FORT COLLINS • STEAMBOAT SPRINGS
DUBAI • ISTANBUL
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The handcrafted aspects of the decorative arts pieces
require an architectural response very different from the
larger museums. I think the personal and intimate nature
– many objects used in everyday life – should be in spaces
with more intimate scale.
We felt the building should be a piece of decorative art
itself. The scale of the building helps people connect with
a place and also connect to the way they live their lives.
Dovetailing with Hugh’s curatorial vision for the art and
objects, the architecture wanted to be relatable. Scale, ma-
terials and detailing were our tools.
We worked closely with Hugh and Merle, and our idea
was to have a celebrated container, a jewel box, to hold all
of the treasures in the collection.
We came up with a yellow box inspired by colors in
Vance Kirkland’s work and by the vibrant Colorado sun;
we want it to sparkle as an expression to the streetscape.
Inside, the box holds the treasures. Outside, the box is in-
teresting to the passerby, both by car and also up close for
the pedestrian.
The box is skinned with Terracotta baguette shaped tile,
which are long and narrow. There are unique window
boxes that communicate to passersby that this is a unique
museum.
JS: Another design intention is the scale of the building.
JO:
Because most of the objects and paintings are meant
to be in a residential setting, we felt the scale of the build-
ing was important. Ceilings are inviting and passageways
are intimate. This allows for a very comfortable feel to the
building both within the context of the neighborhood and
also on the interior.
Galleries are rooms that feel like they could be rooms in
a large home. So the experience is different with an infer-
ence to a home – bringing a sense of place and welcoming
the visitor. The visitor experience is very evident in the
design from a sense of arrival, the process of coat check,
café, restrooms, way finding and setting. It’s inviting, it’s
friendly – a welcoming place to be.
JS: Other details are about the outside experience.
JO:
Walking by, you can see art in the collection by view-
ing the box cases attached to the outside of the building.
These window boxes are designed to express the beauty
within to the public – a kind of public gallery viewed from
the street.
The gardens will be a destination. Our focus is to bring
Colorado plantings and beautiful flowers in colors like
yellow and purple to evoke Kirkland’s work.
Trees on the street will all be yellow in the fall. This is
an intentional reference to Kirkland’s work, to create a di-
verse light-play with the translucent fall leaves and their
casting of a variety of shades of yellow on the building’s
yellow tile.
This is a very unique museum. Hugh’s curatorial ap-
proach, the objects and story housed within a distinctive
architectural expression, encourages the visitor to wander
and explore.
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Leading the Way
