Contemporary Arts Center
Cincinnati Art Museum
Cathedral Basilica
Uptown Arts
Carnegie Arts Center
Contemporary Arts Center
Cincinnati's New Arts Center Draws International Attention and Acclaim
Location:
Cincinnati, OH
Client:
Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center
Cost:
$21,000,000
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Scope:
KZF worked with Pritzker-prize winning architect Zaha Hadid on this 80,000 square-foot, gravity-defying building the New York Times calls, “The most important American building since the end of the Cold War.”
Project description:
The first of its kind in many ways, Cincinnati’s Contemporary Arts Center attracts international attention. Designed by world-renowned architect Zaha Hadid, it was her first public work – and her first commission in the United States. It is also the first American museum designed by a woman. The year after its completion, Ms. Hadid became the first woman to win the esteemed Pritzker Architecture Prize.
As Architect-of-Record, KZF worked closely with Ms. Hadid and her staff to make her unpredictable design a reality. Sitting snugly between existing structures in downtown Cincinnati, the compact space means “your journey through the building must be more vertical than horizontal,” says Ms. Hadid. The ground level of this five-story building becomes a series of ramps leading up to the galleries, where openings in the structural wall give visitors unexpected glimpses into the galleries.
Conceived as floating planes stacked neatly together to create a puzzle-like façade, Ms. Hadid reversed “the usual order of things,” placing heavier materials on top with lighter, transparent materials on the bottom, giving the building a remarkable, gravity-defying appearance.
"Preserving the integrity of the design, within the constraints of a limited budget, required teamwork and expertise of a devoted team. KZF immediately grasped the architectural significance of our design and worked closely to ensure it was not compromised."
Markus Dochantschi, Director, Zaha Hadid, Ltd.