Grand opening of SANAA's Art Gallery of New South Wales expansion
01/12/2022.
Sydney Modern Project at Art Gallery NSW [Sydney] Australia
metalocus, JOSÉ JUAN BARBA
metalocus, JOSÉ JUAN BARBA
One of the most anticipated openings of the year will take place on December 3, the opening and inauguration of the expansion of the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney, which is expected to reach, in the coming days, up to 15,000 people who have already registered for the visit.
The project carried out by the Japanese studio of SANAA, directed by the duo Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, will be the most important cultural complex in Sydney since the opening of the spectacular Opera House almost 50 years ago, as already seen in 2020 when published the updated renderings of the project.
The new standalone building creates a contemporary art museum campus comprising two buildings connected by a public art garden in the Gadigal Country area overlooking Sydney Harbour.
The area known as the Domain is a 34-hectare parkland area on the eastern fringe of the city’s Central Business District, one of the most privileged cultural venues in the world, the Art Gallery is located next to the Royal Botanic Gardens of Sydney.
The project carried out by the Japanese studio of SANAA, directed by the duo Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, will be the most important cultural complex in Sydney since the opening of the spectacular Opera House almost 50 years ago, as already seen in 2020 when published the updated renderings of the project.
The new standalone building creates a contemporary art museum campus comprising two buildings connected by a public art garden in the Gadigal Country area overlooking Sydney Harbour.
The area known as the Domain is a 34-hectare parkland area on the eastern fringe of the city’s Central Business District, one of the most privileged cultural venues in the world, the Art Gallery is located next to the Royal Botanic Gardens of Sydney.
Aerial view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Aerial view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Aerial view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Aerial view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Interior view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Interior view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Interior view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Interior view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, featuring Takashi Murakami Japan Supernatural: Vertiginous After Staring at the Empty World Too Intensely, I Found Myself Trapped in the Realm of Lurking Ghosts and Monsters 2019 © 2019 Takashi Murakami/Kaikai Kiki Co., Ltd. All Rights Reserved., 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Interior view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Exterior view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Exterior view of the Welcome Plaza of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new building, featuring Francis Upritchard Here Comes Everybody 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Exterior view of the Welcome Plaza of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new building, featuring Yayoi Kusama Flowers that Bloom in the Cosmos 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Aerial view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Exterior view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Aerial view of the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
The Tank space in the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022, Photograph by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter.
The Tank space in the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022, Photograph by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter.
Installation view of Lisa Reihana GROUNDLOOP 2022, commissioned for the Sydney Modern Project 2022 with funds provided by the Art Gallery of New South Wales Foundation, Creative New Zealand, Anna Dudek and Brad Banducci, Simon Johnson and David Nichols, Michael Martin and Elizabeth Popovski, The Papas Family, Bill and Karen Robinson, Rae-ann Sinclair and Nigel Williams, Jenny and Andrew Smith and Jane Taylor and Scott Malcolm © Lisa Reihana. Photograph by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter.
Installation view of Lisa Reihana GROUNDLOOP 2022, commissioned for the Sydney Modern Project 2022 with funds provided by the Art Gallery of New South Wales Foundation, Creative New Zealand, Anna Dudek and Brad Banducci, Simon Johnson and David Nichols, Michael Martin and Elizabeth Popovski, The Papas Family, Bill and Karen Robinson, Rae-ann Sinclair and Nigel Williams, Jenny and Andrew Smith, and Jane Taylor and Scott Malcolm © Lisa Reihana. Photograph by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Zan Wimberley.
Installation view of one of the interstitial spaces in the new building at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, featuring works by (left to right) Ugo Rondinone, Frank Stella and Sol LeWitt. Photograph by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Zan Wimberley.
Installation view of the Dreamhome: Stories of Art and Shelter exhibition in the new building at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, featuring Samara Golden Guts, 2022 © Samara Golden. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Installation view of the Making Worlds exhibition in the new building at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, featuring Kimsooja Archive of mind 2017–ongoing © Kimsooja. Photograph by Brett Hemmings.
Installation view of the 20th-century galleries at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, featuring Ken Unsworth Suspended stone circle II, 1974–77, 1988, © Ken Unsworth. Photograph by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Christopher Snee.
Installation view of Simryn Gill’s Clearing 2020–22, within the exhibition From Here, for Now at the Art Gallery of New South Wales © Simryn Gill. Photograph by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Mim Stirling.
Installation view of the Making Worlds exhibition in the new building at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, featuring Shireen Taweel tracing transcendence, 2018–21 (foregound) and Mabel Juli Garnkiny Ngarrangkarni, 2006. Photograph by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Zan Wimberley.
Installation view of the Dreamhome.- Stories of Art and Shelter exhibition in the new building at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, featuring Isabel and Alfredo Aquilizan From this place, 2022 © Isabel and Alfredo Aquilizan. Photograph by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Felicity Jenkins.
Jitish Kallat Public Notice 2 2007, Art Gallery of New South Wales, donated through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program by Gene and Brian Sherman, 2015. Photograph by Art Gallery New South Wales, Jenni Carter.
Installation view of the Elemental exhibition, Art Gallery of New South Wales. Photograph by Art Gallery New South Wales, Jenni Carter.
Installation view of Adrián Villar Rojas The End of Imagination, 2022, in the Tank at the Art Gallery of New South Wales © Adrián Villar Rojas. Photograph by Jörg Baumann.
Installation view of Francis Upritchard Here Comes Everybody 2022, commissioned for the Sydney Modern Project with funds provided by Peter Weiss AO, the Droga Family in memory of Vibeke Droga, the Hadley Family, and the Art Gallery of New South Wales Foundation, 2022 © Francis Upritchard. Photograph by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Christopher Snee.
Yayoi Kusama Flowers that Bloom in the Cosmos 2022, commissioned for the Sydney Modern Project with funds provided by the Art Gallery of New South Wales Foundation and the Gandel Foundation, 2022 © Yayoi Kusama. Photograph by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Zan Wimberley.
Site plan. Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022.
Entry floor plan. Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022.
LL1 floor plan. Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022.
LL2 floor plan. Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022.
LL4 floor plan. Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022.
Sections. Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022.
Sections. Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022.
Details. Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022.
Details. Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022.
Details. Art Gallery of New South Wales’ new SANAA-designed building, 2022.
Designed by Kazuyo Sejima + Ryue Nishizawa / SANAA as a complementary counterpart to the Art Gallery’s revitalised original building with its 19th-century neoclassical facade, SANAA’s design on-site, include three limestone-clad art pavilions that gently step down towards the harbour; 250 metres of rammed earth wall over two levels made with material sourced from across NSW; and 3400 square metres of the accessible roof 'art terraces' and courtyards.
New art spaces include a column-free gallery, a gallery for time-based art, and adaptive re-use of a decommissioned Second World War naval fuel bunker, now known as the Tank, a 2200-square-metre space that is one of Australia's most unique art destinations.
The design delivers needed exhibition space while respecting and enhancing public use of the surrounding landscape and improving access to Sydney’s eastern cultural precinct. The new building also comprises art research and education spaces, multipurpose spaces, a gallery shop, food and beverage facilities, and visitor amenities.
Aerial view. Art Gallery of New South Wales by SANAA. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
New art spaces include a column-free gallery, a gallery for time-based art, and adaptive re-use of a decommissioned Second World War naval fuel bunker, now known as the Tank, a 2200-square-metre space that is one of Australia's most unique art destinations.
The design delivers needed exhibition space while respecting and enhancing public use of the surrounding landscape and improving access to Sydney’s eastern cultural precinct. The new building also comprises art research and education spaces, multipurpose spaces, a gallery shop, food and beverage facilities, and visitor amenities.
Aerial view. Art Gallery of New South Wales by SANAA. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
"It has been a wonderful honour to design such an important public building in Sydney. Working closely with the Art Gallery of New South Wales team, we aimed to design an art museum building that is harmonious with its surroundings, one that breathes with the city, the park, and the harbour. We hope it will be a special place where visitors feel connected to art wherever they are in this beautiful setting."
Kazuyo Sejima y Ryue Nishizawa
The new expansion building runs on 100% renewable energy, with more than 10% of its electricity needs produced by solar panels located on the roof of the Entrance Pavilion. The Art Gallery is the first public art museum in Australia to achieve the highest environmental standard for design. The Sydney Modern Project has been awarded a 6-star Green Star design rating by the Green Building Council of Australia. Classified as "world leadership" in sustainability, the rating exceeds the Art Gallery’s original 5-star goal and sets a new standard for art museums globally.
SANAA collaborated with Australian and New Zealand-based architecture firm Architectus who acted as executive architects on the project. The site's engaging landscape was achieved by the work of landscape architects McGregor Coxall and Kathryn Gustafson with Seattle-based firm Gustafson Guthrie Nicol (GGN).
Interior view. Art Gallery of New South Wales by SANAA. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
Interior view. Art Gallery of New South Wales by SANAA. Photograph by Iwan Baan.
The Tank space. Art Gallery of New South Wales by SANAA. Photograph by Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter.
More information
Architects
SANAA. Architects.- Kazuyo Sejima + Ryue Nishizawa.
Collaborators
Execution architect.- Architectus (Luke Johnson, Stephen Long, John Jeffrey, Jane Fielding).
Structural engineer.- Arup.
Landscape architects.- McGregor Coxall y Gustafson Guthrie Nichol (GGN).
Structural engineer.- Arup.
Landscape architects.- McGregor Coxall y Gustafson Guthrie Nichol (GGN).
Client
Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW).
Delivery authority.- Infrastructure NSW.
Builder
Richard Crookes Constructions.
Area
Art Gallery prior to expansion.- 23,000 sqm (original building).
Art Gallery after expansion.- 40,000 sqm (new and original building).
Exhibition space prior to expansion.- 9,000 sqm (original building).
Exhibition space after expansion.- 16,000 sqm (new and original building).
Art Gallery after expansion.- 40,000 sqm (new and original building).
Exhibition space prior to expansion.- 9,000 sqm (original building).
Exhibition space after expansion.- 16,000 sqm (new and original building).
Dates
Sydney Modern vision and masterplan launched.- 2013 .
International design competition announced.- 2014.
SANAA selected as design architect.- 2015.
NSW Government funding announced.- 2017.
State Significant Development Application approved.- 2018.
Construction commenced.- November 2019.
Sydney Modern Project completed.- December 2022.
Opening.- 3 December 2022.
International design competition announced.- 2014.
SANAA selected as design architect.- 2015.
NSW Government funding announced.- 2017.
State Significant Development Application approved.- 2018.
Construction commenced.- November 2019.
Sydney Modern Project completed.- December 2022.
Opening.- 3 December 2022.
Project funding
Total project cost.- AU$344 million.
NSW Government funding.- AU$244 million.
Private donor contributions.- AU$100 million.
NSW Government funding.- AU$244 million.
Private donor contributions.- AU$100 million.
Venue / location
Gadigal Country. Art Gallery Road, The Domain. Sydney NSW 2000. Australia.
Photography
Iwan Baan, Brett Hemmings, Jörg Baumann.
Art Gallery of New South Wales.- Jenni Carter, Zan Wimberley, Christopher Snee, Mim Stirling, Felicity Jenkins.
Art Gallery of New South Wales.- Jenni Carter, Zan Wimberley, Christopher Snee, Mim Stirling, Felicity Jenkins.
KAZUYO SEJIMA & RYUE NISHIZAWA. SANAA
Kazuyo Sejima (Ibaraki, Japan, 1956) and Ryue Nishizawa (Kanagawa, Japan, 1966) worked independently from each other before founding the SANAA Ltd. studio in 1995. Having studied architecture at the Japan Women’s University, Sejima went on to work for the renowned architect Toyo Ito. She set up her own studio in 1987 and in 1992 was proclaimed Young Architect of the Year in Japan. Nishizawa studied architecture at the Yokohama National University. In addition to his work with Sejima, he has had his own practice since 1997.
The studio has built several extraordinarily successful commercial and institutional buildings, civic centres, homes and museums both in Japan and elsewhere. These include the O Museum in Nagano (1999) and the N Museum in Wakayama (1997), the Day-Care Center in Yokohama (2000), the Prada Beauty Store in Tokyo and Hong Kong (2001), the Issey Miyake and Christian Dior Building in Tokyo (2003) and the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art in Kanazawa (2004). Sejima also designed the famous Small House in Tokyo (2000), the Toledo Museum of Art Glass Pavilion, Toledo, Ohio (2001-2006), the extension to the Institut Valencia d’Art Modern, Valencia, Spain (2002 – ), the Zollverein School, Essen, Germany (2003-2006), the New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York (2003-2007) and the Novartis Campus WSJ-157 Office Building, Basle, Switzerland (2003 – ).
In 2004 Sejima and Nishizawa were awarded the Golden Lion at the 9th Venice Architecture Biennale for their distinguished work on the Metamorph exhibition.
Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa have won the 2010 Pritzker Prize.
The 12th International Architecture Exhibition, was directed by Kazuyo Sejima, the first woman to direct the venice architecture biennale, since its inception in 1980.
Ryue Nishizawa and Kazuyo Sejima. Kazuyo Sejima
RYUE NISHIZAWA
Ryue Nishizawa. Architect. Born in 1966 in Tokyo. In 1990, he graduated from Yokohama Graduate School of Architecture, Yokohama National University, and joined Kazuyo Sejima & Associates. In 1995, he founded a firm named SANAA together with Kazuyo Sejima. He established Office of Ryue Nishizawa in 1997. In 2001, he was appointed as Assistant Professor at Yokohama Graduate School of Architecture, Yokohama National University (Y-GSA), and has been a Y-GSA Professor since 2010.
His numerous awards include the Golden Lion Award of the 9th International Architecture Exhibition at the 2004 Venice Biennale of Architecture, and the 2010 Pritzker Architecture Prize.
His main works include: International Academy of Media Arts and Sciences (IAMAS) Multimedia Studio*, Weekend House, Dior Omotesando Store*, 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa*, Moriyama House, House A, The Glass Pavilion of the Toledo Museum of Art*, Marine Station Naoshima*, Stadttheater Almer (De Kunstlinie)*, New Museum*, Towada Art Center, ROLEX Learning Center*, Teshima Art Museum. * SANAA design collaborated with Kazuyo Sejima.
KAZUYO SEJIMA
Kazuyo Sejima. Architect. Born 1956 in Ibaraki prefecture, Japan. Master’s in Architecture, Japan Women’s University, 1981. Worked in office of Toyo Ito before founding Kazuyo Sejima and Associates in 1987. Founded SANAA with Ryue Nishizawa in 1995. Awards won by SANAA include the Arnold Brunner Memorial Medal of the American Academy of Arts and Letters (2002), the Golden Lion at the 9th International Architecture Exhibition of the Venice Biennale (2004), a design prize from the Architectural Institute of Japan (2006), the Kunstpreis Berlin from the Berlin Academy of Arts (2007), and the Pritzker Architecture Prize (2010). Works by SANAA include the Glass Pavilion at the Toledo Museum of Art; the De Kunstlinie Theater and Cultural Center in Almere...
Ray Brown, Colin Odbert, Ruth Wilson... Architectus
Architectus is an award-winning Australian architecture and design studio specialising in arts and culture, community, commercial, education, interiors, residential, transport, urban design and planning. Their insightful and humancentric design approach is combined with a collaborative ethos to create unique places that are exemplars of elegance, function and sustainability. They operate as a single studio with creative teams based in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth and have designed and delivered some of Australia’s most complex and important cultural buildings.
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