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The Place
Throughout its history, The Museum
of Modern Art has used architecture as a vehicle for self-renewal
and regeneration. The recently completed building project represents
MoMA's most extensive redefinition since its founding seventy-five
years ago. The Museum combines new spaces with MoMA's original
architecture to dramatically enhance its dynamic collection
of modern and contemporary art. MoMA conducted an extensive
worldwide search for an architect who would not simply add on
to the Museum's existing architecture, but would be able to
transform MoMA's various buildings and additions into a unified
whole. Japanese architect Yoshio Taniguchi won the commission
with a design that
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The Place
would, in his own words, "transform MoMA into a bold new museum while maintaining its historical, cultural, and social context." The
630,000-square-foot Museum has nearly twice the capacity of
the former facility. The new six-story David and Peggy Rockefeller
Building houses the main collection and temporary exhibition
galleries. Taniguchi worked closely with curators to refine
his concept into a design that would expertly accommodate the
type and scale of works displayed. Spacious galleries for contemporary
art are located on the second floor, with more intimately scaled
galleries for the collection on the levels above.
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