Building Design Construction

ON THE
drawing board
BY MICHAEL CHAMERNIK, ASSOCIATE EDITOR
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AQUARIUM
OF THE PACIFIC UNVEILS
A WHALE OF A PROJECT IN LONG BEACH
The Aquarium of the Pacifi c’s new Pacifi c Visions wing in Long
Beach, Calif., will have a façade made of 800 light-diffusing glass
panels that changes colors throughout the day. The panels,
which total 18,000 sf, also will act as a ventilated rainscreen. Best
of all, when the light hits the aquarium wing’s smooth contours
just right, it will look, as Shakespeare’s Polonius once said, “very
like a whale.” EHDD designed the addition, which features a 300-
seat theater with a 32x130-foot screen, curved in a 180-degree
arc. The wing will have a spacious front plaza that doubles as
a community gathering space, a 6,000-sf exhibit gallery with
live animals and interactive displays, and an art gallery. The $53
million development is the fi nal phase of the aquarium’s campus
master plan.
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WEST
PALM BEACH’S ‘MUSEUM IN A GARDEN’
WILL EMPHASIZE OUTDOOR GATHERING SPOTS
Construction is moving along on an expansion to a museum that
holds 7,000+ pieces of art, including works from Vincent van
Gogh and Edgar Degas. Foster + Partners designed the new
West Wing for the Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach,
Fla. The fi rm calls the concept a “museum in a garden.” Outside
the building, 20,000 sf of lawns and plantings will replace a
parking lot; a 9,000-sf event lawn will be available for parties.
Other renovations: 12,000 sf of new gallery space, a 210-seat
auditorium, and a family gallery, which will have a 150-foot-long
colonnade with large windows that look out onto the gardens.
A 3,600-sf, 43-foot-tall great hall will serve as a gathering spot
at the center of the building. The Building Team: CBT (executive
architect), EDSA (landscape), and Gilbane Building Co. (GC).
20 MAY 2016 BUILDING DESIGN+CONSTRUCTION www.BDCnetwork.com