When the Metropolitan Museum of Art opened in 1982, Rockefeller Wing was a quiet meditation place that showed off the institution’s collection of Africa, ancient America and Oceania. Made of wood and other natural fibers, they can only withstand about fifty liters of light, so each piece floats in its own private luminous pool in the dim gallery.
“That’s been the classic way of lighting Africa and Oceania materials, which are often made of wood and are light-sensitive. It’s such a cliché that they’re always seen as the dark continent. And when you go into these galleries, they look dark, like a Hollywood version of what those cultures are about,” architect Kulapat Yantrasast of LA’s WHY Architecture tells Observer. He is the man in charge of the $70 million rework of the New Mets, the wing opened in the spring and received praise from Universal Film Stars.
“So what we’re trying to do is create an uplifting feeling. When you walk into the room it feels exciting. The ceiling, while lower, feels higher, just like the cathedral, because we eliminated the light and everything else. So lighting is a big part of our changes.”
This change involves replacing south-facing glass walls with condensation and leakage, and with a new glass system – a five-layer honeycomb design with UV and energy filters that protect the art while providing more light. “I strongly believe that the park needs to be part of the picture because most of these artworks are in natural light, outdoors,” Yantrasast observed. “So it makes sense to establish this connection with the park. Most of the wells in the wings are in the north-south direction and therefore do not hinder the view.”
The highlight of the renovation gallery is Ceremonial House Ceilings The Wing of the Kwoma artist in Papua New Guinea opened 43 years ago. Painted Western Horse palm leaf stems form panels, a map of the universe, clan history and mythological knowledge. Traditionally, community homes are where rural leaders (always men) gather to discuss the problems their people face. In the past, the audience could not stand under a flat roof. But by tilting it and placing a bench under it, Yantrasast becomes it so visitors can lie down to admire the ceiling, or enjoy activities and music parties below it.
Why the architecture celebrates 20 years of major design art spaces: David Kordansky Gallery in Los Angeles, Friezela Tent, Academy Film Museum, Northwest Coast Hall of the American Museum of Natural History and the showroom in Beverly Hills in Christie. “I never thought I would make a living by profession. Most architects like new buildings rather than renovations. I think that’s almost the same thing,” he said.
Projects designed from scratch include the Grand Rapids Museum, the Speed Art Museum in Kentucky and Studio Art Hall in Pomona College, and the house he built for himself in the Venetian area of Limbo, his Tchaikovsky Academic Opera and the Tchaikovsky Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre in Russia, which went bankrupt a few years ago, but in the Iksain of ukaine of ukaine of the ukaine of the ukaine of the ukaine of the ukrain of the of the ukraine browne broad of. “Because we started building and hoped that everything would be restored to friendly conditions, they could do that without us,” he said. “But I hope they did it because I think the culture makes a lot of sense there.”
Yantrasast was born in Bangkok and studied at Chulalongkorn University and Tokyo University. After graduation, he served as an assistant to Pritzker winner Tadao Ando from 1996 to 2003.
“My grandparents in Thailand were immigrants from China,” he said. “So, I heard these stories from a young age about why they had to leave – war, prejudice, conflict.
Yantrasast saw the fear on his face as he looked at his staff, assistants and friends. He sighed, “That’s not the right mode for anyone to enter.” “Like this country has a fur ball and we have to suffocate it and be a better cat.”
His next was the Louvre, the former palace and the most sacred art institution in the world, for which he designed a space for the newly formed department that contained late Roman, Byzantine and early Christian artworks, adjacent to the Islamic Wing. Despite the bureaucracy of traditional thinking, he was delighted to find his museum with an open mind.
“They want something different,” his voice music noted. “What we are trying to do is create an idea from late Roman, Byzantine, Islam, early Christians, so we understand that the world at that time was not as divided as we thought. When you look at the art of the time and the subjects of the time, even their belief system, you realize how close they are. To see the art of the present, we can really go beyond prejudice and cliché.”
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