City Gallery / architecture +

 00:00 - 26 June, 2012

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© Patrick Reynolds

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  Architects

architecture +

 Location

Queens Drive at Central Library, Wellington 5010, New Zealand

 Design Team

Stuart Gardyne, Michael Bennett, Arnie Makan, Damon Peachey, Belinda Tuohy,
Nick Whiting, Chloe Phelps, Rachel Logie

 Client

Wellington Museum’s Trust

 Area

185.0 m2

 Project Year

2009

 Photographs

Patrick Reynolds

Text description provided by the architects. The City Gallery occupies the old 1930’s
Wellington Central Library building located in the Civic Square. In 1992-93 we completed
additions to the City Gallery and in 2009 we designed and completed a new extension.

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© Patrick Reynolds

The overriding architectural issue was to allow the history of the building – both physical and
emotional – to be recognised despite its new function as a venue for exhibitions. Tidying up
the building or removing references to its previous function would be to deny that they ever
existed and akin to tearing out a page of a history book.

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 © Patrick
Reynolds

We treated the work we did as a new and contemporary layer, which allows the richness of
the building's history and 1930’s stripped classical architecture to be expressed. The new
layer is distinct and expressive of the contemporary focus of the gallery, and does not attempt
to pretend it was part of the original building. The original building can be clearly seen and is
given dignity by this approach.
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© Patrick Reynolds

The new addition to the building accommodates two additional galleries and an auditorium,
allowing the existing cinema to be removed to make space for a third additional gallery
within the original building.

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© Patrick Reynolds

The addition is clad in an open metal webgrate rainscreen over a waterproof cladding to help
identify the addition as something new and discrete from the original building, and to form a
relationship with the contemporary stair and lift tower additions of 1993. The webgrate
rainscreen is simple and bold, yet unexpected, supporting City Gallery’s role to challenge
preconceived notions of art and design. The strength of the metal is successfully carried by
the weight of the existing building materials, while the lightness of the open grate ensures
that the addition is not domineering over the original building.

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Plan

As in the existing galleries, the character of the new galleries is derived from the
ceilings. The ceilings reverse the existing approach of the lower central suspended ceiling,
and elevate the centre with a glazed roof lantern. The lantern increases the sense of height
and space of these smaller galleries, while also providing controlled natural light. The
finishes highlight the difference between the original and new buildings, and provide a
connection with the auditorium below. The ceiling lining is timber sarking of a similar
quality, but painted to match the exposed overhead steel beams and cross bracing. The
timber sarking recounts the imprint left on the existing concrete soffits from the original
timber formwork.

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Section