The Henry Art Gallery is located at a key intersection of pedestrian and vehicular traffic as well as a significant point of connection between the University of Washington and the surrounding commercial and residential University District. In particular, the recent addition to the gallery complex had to deal with unique issues of public circulation and visual connections. In this paper, I will argue that the primarily East/West circulation strategies that take pedestrians through the site and East/West visual connections across the site are handled admirably while North/South pedestrian and vehicular circulation routes past the site and visual experiences along its length leave much to be desired.
Overview of East/West Relationship
The Henry sits just East of Red square, a significant plaza space and circulation intersection for the main part of the campus, engaging multiple lecture halls and libraries. Other major lecture halls as well as key administrative buildings are located off the main campus to the west of the Henry. Further, many bus stops, student residences, the University Bookstore and other student-oriented businesses are situated West and North of the site, particularly along University Way (aka “The Ave”). West and immediately South of the building are significant bus stops adjacent to the site along 15th Avenue. The Henry also sits on top of a major parking garage, for visitors to the museum and the university at large. For vehicular traffic, including buses, 15th Avenue sits at the terminus of Campus Parkway, a major East/West street with two lanes of traffic and a median in between, which ties the campus to The Ave and to the University Bridge.
Moving from Red Square toward the Henry, pedestrians go down a series of steps and follow a path which opens up to engage the public space situated to the South of the main entry space to the museum. Passing the statue of George Washington, they encounter the main museum building forward and to their right, juxtaposed with a smaller structure (the partial enclosure for bicycle parking as well as stairs and elevator to the parking garage below) forward and to their left. These elements serve to frame a central space, thus providing a helpful visual cue – a pair of apparent walls providing a continuity of direction as the path opens up. Further, the resulting central space presents pedestrians with some greenery and objects of interest, which draw the eye forward.
The rectangular and triangular glass objects in the middle, apparently set on pedestals or into greenery respectively, seem, at first glance, to be some kind of public art installation, objects of intrinsic aesthetic interest. In fact, this effect cleverly masks their functional use as skylights for gallery spaces on the museum floors below. Also, taken as a group, these objects further subdivide the path, guiding people to either side without forcing an abrupt change in direction, and supporting the initial implied division of paths created by the presence of the George Washington statue. Thus, these objects serve to enliven this public space and draw people into and through it while also being functional means of bringing natural light into subterranean museum spaces. The left (South) path leads past the stairs and elevator to the underground garage toward a spiral staircase down to 15th Avenue, while the right (North) path leads past the main museum entrance and across 15th, down some stairs, and onto a plaza space adjacent to Schmitz Hall, the University’s main administrative building.
Atop the central stalk of the spiral staircase sits another interesting set of objects – glass block inlaid into the concrete cylinder. Again, this move serves an aesthetic function – a glittering curve laid into bare concrete. In addition, it draws pedestrians to it and provides light to gallery spaces below. Moving down the spiral staircase, one is reoriented to the street below through a rhythm of relative darkness next to the building and controlled views to the sidewalk and street beyond. Then, people are ultimately oriented toward the bus stops immediately adjacent as well as other buildings beyond them to the South. Thus, the staircase is successfully presented as a point of interest at its peak and takes advantage of orientations to point people in what are likely to be their directions of travel from either side – bus stops at the bottom and the main campus at the top. It also serves to create a dynamic contrast with the other off-campus experience of the apparently floating foot bridge, which is linear, wide open and seems to hover over 15th avenue.
Moving past the slightly recessed entry to the museum, pedestrians come to the relatively narrow bridge across 15th. This bridge is angled slightly North of West, likely due to relative position of the site and path as compared to Campus Parkway. Nonetheless, this orientation seems to respond to the traffic through the site and the likely destinations of those traveling along it. Specifically, most of the commercial and residential off-campus activities in the area take place to the West and North of the site. Also, though it is of a different type and only visible on the approach to the bridge from below, a curious bronze statue lends the bridge some additional aesthetic interest. Still, it is difficult to determine how much this bridge should be included in this critique, since it is a remnant from prior to the recent addition. However, if nothing else, the bridge is well integrated into the new scheme, contrasting with the spiral stair and shaped by the placement of the skylights and building entrance.
From below, visitors to the museum as well as students, faculty and staff of the university move up and into the site more directly via an elevator and staircase. Both of these connections are dealt with well, each with respect to a gradation of lighting conditions. Moving up the stairs, the progressive experience of light is handled with clever subtly. First, artificial lights give way to diffuse natural East light through a flat wall glass blocks inserted into a concrete wall (which also give an aesthetic nod to the spiral staircase with its curved glass block). Second, this diffuse natural light gives way to an open window in the South concrete wall of the partial concrete enclosure. Third, a larger window is presented to the West before a full wall is laid open to the North. At this opening, one finally emerges, oriented toward the museum entrance across the field of skylights, but presented with all other circulation options and views on all sides as well. With the elevator, a gradation of experience is less plausible, but as present as possible. As one comes up in the elevator, better lit than the garage, one steps out and confronts the Western wall rather than any direct view, and thus still feels relatively enclosed while also being surrounded by partial views – which at least prevents a potentially boring or jarring experiences of either coming into a full enclosure or directly into the open. In the case of both the stairs and the elevator, it is clear that the sequence of experiences as treated carefully in terms of the function of light, but also in terms of creating aesthetic connections to other related elements of the site, such as the spiral staircase, and views in various directions.
Approaching the museum from the West, on foot or by car along Campus Parkway, the curved roof of the lower museum level curves up and away from 15th Avenue and toward campus. In this case, unfortunately, the three large curved planes of glass on this roof surface clearly did not work out for the museum – likely because they were letting in too much direct light. Again, though, we find an aesthetic gesture tied to a functional move, which creates both a point of interest and an indication of orientation and change of grade. These large glazed zones adjacent to the larger vehicular streetscape, were they open, would also tie this roof to the smaller skylights on the pedestrian level above, displaying a responsiveness to relative scale as well. From this Western side, the two paths of the spiral staircase and pedestrian bridge are split by this curving roof and clearly differentiated as a result, much as the skylights above create a similar division. Thus, this section of curved roof atop a lower wall successfully draws the approaching viewer up and over, pulling the eye into main campus, past the statue and into Red Square, visually connecting the campus with Campus Parkway, which, as has been mentioned, is the primary traffic route for cars coming across the University Bridge and heading for the campus. Further, taken as a whole, this variegated elevation presents a dynamic and engaging composition internally, while also creating interesting contrasts with the campus buildings above and beyond it.
Overview of North/South Relationships
Along the West side of the museum, 15th Avenue is a major North/South connection which draws on vehicular traffic from Pacific Avenue to the South as well as 45th Street to the North, which in turn lead to the University Medical Center, IMA, Montlake Bridge and HWY 520 to the Southeast and deeper into the University District as well as beyond to HWY I-5 and Wallingford, Fremont and Ballard to the Northwest. For pedestrians, this route is admittedly somewhat less used but is still a major adjacent thoroughfare for foot traffic as well as a significant border to the main part of campus. Along the East side of the museum, the primarily pedestrian George Washington Lane, also used by university vehicles, connects Southeastern parts of campus to places in the North. It is used by many campus-goers to connect from off-campus to the Northern campus as well, though still not as major as the aforementioned East/West pathways.
Circulation and Visual Connections Past and Along the Site
Moving North along the West side of the site, following 15th Avenue, the spiral staircase does present an interesting option. However, once one has moved past the staircase, the sidewalk narrows and vegetation crops up to block the building. When these bushes give way, and the sidewalk broadens back in toward the building, one might expect to be welcomed into the lower level of the museum, or at least to see some interesting window into it. What awaits one, however, is an apparently permanently closed door without decoration or invitation. Similarly, when approaching from the North along 15th, vegetation blocks a view of a building, again in an uninspiring manner, neither fully engaging the building nor really addressing the street. Again, one might expect these to give way to an interesting window into the museum, or at least a hint of what’s inside, rather than a disappointing view into a largely unused and dim courtyard through discouraging metal bars. However, the hope again arises that the apparent setback a little further down might lead to some sort of an entrance, but then one is confronted with that same dull blank door. The large lettering of the Henry Art Gallery, with a little line leading the eye to this unused door (much like the smaller script and line on the level above lead to the true entrance) further serve to confuse the issue, as there is no open entry to match this bold welcome anywhere to be found. Perhaps the original scheme included this door as an alternate entrance, but, if so, it should have been left out entirely in the final design.
Moving North along the East side of the site, following George Washington Lane, one follows a low brick wall and slowly encounters a larger vista to the West. When one finally has a view to what is more immediately below to the West, one again encounters an unfortunately boring sight: an exposed outdoor service parking lot with nondescript museum vehicles and little else of interest. Looking farther up, toward the main buildings, the relationship of the spiral stair and other building elements is unclear, and the view of the courtyard area is hidden. The open courtyard area, once revealed, does draw one to it, but this time to the detriment of those who wish to pass by and move farther North. Further, the blank façade of the concrete and metal structure beyond, interspersed with only a few darkened windows to uninteresting non-gallery spaces, presents a tedious and repetitive long face of the building to walk parallel to. Finally, at the North end of the building, an abrupt end to the structure coincides with a seemingly unrelated circular concrete service building, left naked and detached from the main part of the building for no apparent reason.
A Good Building and a Great Building
It would be fair to say that the East/West circulation and visual relationships across and through the site represent more significant design concerns than the lesser-experience North/South relationships past and along it. Still, given the impressive care taken by the architects in the former of these cardinal pairings, I find it rather unfortunate that little such treatment was given to the latter of them. In the East/West direction, the integration of functional moves with aesthetic gestures, as well as the use of clever geometries and material relationships, come together to create a complex and coherent whole. However, when viewed along the length of the building, these moves seem to fall apart, giving way to awkward circulation surprises and dull visual revelations, as well as uninteresting flat facades and repetitive boring materiality. For most buildings, there is only so much one can take on, given the complexities of an urban site, the need for public space, the existence of an historical building, the demands of a budget and the wills of various clients. Still, the ability to take all of these in hand and make a building work in all directions could have turned this project from a good one into a great one.
architecture, landscape, urban design & planning 