Ceremony
dal 1/6/2000 al 18/6/2000
Segnalato da
1/6/2000
Ceremony
Dia Art Foundation, New York
Dia Center for the Arts Begins Construction on Major New
Contemporary Art Museum in Beacon, New York.
(images and previous press releases are available at
http://www.diacenter.org/beacon/)
Dia Center for the Arts will hold a groundbreaking ceremony on
June 2, 2000, at the site of a new museum for its permanent
collection. Situated on the Hudson River in Beacon, New York,
this facility is sixty miles north of Dia's Manhattan art
center.
Plans to undertake the museum were made public one year ago
when Governor George E. Pataki announced a package of local and
state grants totaling up to $2.8 million after the 300,000
square-foot historic box-printing facility was donated to Dia
by the International Paper Company. Since then Dia has
completed environmental remediation and finalized schematic
designs in preparation for construction to begin this summer.
The $50 million project includes $17 million to renovate the
former factory. The museum is expected to open to the public in
fall 2001.
Dia aims to retain the industrial character of the existing
building, featuring its vast spaces, high ceilings, and
extensive ribbons of north-facing skylights. Limited
architectural intervention is proposed, in order to use
wherever possible the original floors, ceilings, walls, and the
abundant indirect natural light as the principal source of
illumination.
OpenOffice, an architectural and design firm based in New York
City, will serve as Project Architect. Led by four young
innovative principals, Alan Koch, Lyn Rice, Galia Solomonoff,
and Linda Taalman, the firm is notable for its involvement with
art-related projects, including galleries and public buildings,
and its extensive work with contemporary artists. Currently it
is designing a series of twelve residences, each conceived in
collaboration with an artist. Dia's Beacon project is the first
museum undertaken by the group.
Artist Robert Irwin worked with Dia's staff to formulate an
initial schematic plan for the museum. He will also design an
exterior work of art for the landscape and the interface
between the interior and exterior spaces. An internationally
recognized artist, Irwin's work has involved painting and
sculpture, as well as architectural and landscape projects.
Significantly, he devised an arts enrichment master plan for
the Miami Airport in 1995 and in 1997 created the garden for
the Getty Center in Los Angeles. Irwin's most recent
site-specific installation, "Excursus: Homage to the Square,"
is currently on view at Dia's art museum at 548 West 22nd
Street in Manhattan, through June 18, 2000.
Irwin's project will extend the boundaries of the museum
experience beyond the building to its outdoor surroundings. A
short walk from Beacon's Metro North rail station, the building
and its 26-acre site is adjacent to 70 acres of riverfront
parkland. Dia and the Scenic Hudson organization, who plan an
environmentally sensitive development of 15 acres at Beacon
Landing between the rail station and the museum, have jointly
commissioned New York artist George Trakas to create plans for
trails, vistas, and public water access along the entire
waterfront.
Dia's museum at Beacon will become an international cultural
destination, an optimal environment for visual engagement and
contemplation in a setting of compelling historical interest
and scenic beauty.
Michael Govan remarks, "For two decades Dia has been a pioneer
in the restoration and conversion of large industrial buildings
for public display of contemporary art. Working with artists,
in particular Donald Judd in the 1970s, Dia created
installations that situated artworks in the generous open space
and simple raw beauty of vernacular warehouses and factories.
These precedents have inspired numerous similar museum
conversions in the United States and abroad."
In 1979 with Dia's support, Donald Judd renovated an army
barracks in Marfa, Texas, and in 1986 architect Richard
Gluckman reworked a former warehouse space to create Dia's
exhibition galleries, which have become the anchor of the new
Chelsea art district. By using converted spaces, Dia's museums
emphasize the experience of viewing art and ambitious works by
individual artists in sympathetic environments.
Assembled largely during the 1970s and early '80s by Dia's
founders, Houston arts patron Philippa de Menil and German art
dealer Heiner Friedrich, the collection today includes major
holdings by artists including Joseph Beuys, John Chamberlain,
Walter De Maria, Dan Flavin, Donald Judd, Imi Knoebel, Blinky
Palermo, Fred Sandback, Richard Serra, Cy Twombly, Andy Warhol,
and Robert Whitman. The collection on view in Beacon will be
augmented with new acquisitions and long-term loans, as well as
site-specific works.
Dia also maintains and operates several long-term site-specific
art works including Walter De Maria's "The New York Earth Room"
and "The Broken Kilometer" in New York City; "The Lightning
Field" in New Mexico; the Dan Flavin Art Institute in
Bridgehampton, Long Island; as well as collaborative
initiatives including The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh and
The Cy Twombly Gallery in Houston.
Dia Center for the Arts is a tax-exempt charitable
organization. Established in 1974, the organization has become
one of the largest in the United States dedicated to
contemporary art and contemporary culture. In fulfilling this
commitment, Dia sustains diverse programming in poetry, visual
arts, education, and critical discourse and debate.
Contact: Fitz & Co (212) 627-1455 fax (212) 627-0654 email
artpr@fitzandco.com
For more information about Dia Center for the Arts please visit
our website
Dia center for the arts
542 West 22nd Street New York New York 10011
212 989 5566 fax 212 989 4055