New York's Park Avenue Armory, originally built in 1861 for the Seventh Regiment of the National Guard and restored by Herzog & de Meuron in 2007, is about to be temporarily taken over by Rafael Viñoly. On April 30th 2014 Artvest Partners will launch Spring Masters New York, "a fair for art produced between antiquity and the 20th century, which corresponds with Christie’s and Sotheby’s signature Impressionism and modern art auctions". Viñoly's hexagonal grid of exhibition rooms will fill the 55,000 square foot Drill Hall in an attempt to break with the monotony of the rectangular grid format.
According to Viñoly, putting exhibitors within cubicle spaces produces "very little excitement as a journey". Six sided modules increase the average wall area and enhance views into and from the main circulation areas. It offers "a more articulated path that encourages discovery" creating "a much more exciting public space." Interior designer Diana Viñoly, Rafael’s wife, is "ensuring continuity among the booths’ outward-facing planes and drawing connections between the overall interior experience and Park Avenue’s famous springtime display of tulips."
Find out more about Park Avenue Armory on ArchDaily here.
References: Architectural Record, Spring Masters New York 2014
