BAMPFA Opens with the 'Architecture of Life'
John Hill
8. February 2016
Diller Scofidio + Renfro, Hand holding a model for BAMPFA, 2012 (Digital photograph courtesy and © Diller Scofidio + Renfro)
The University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA) opened its new Diller Scofidio + Renfro-designed home on January 31st with the exhibition Architecture of Life, running until May 29th.
The renovation and expansion of UC Berkeley's old printing plant features an angled volume – as illustrated by the above DS+R model that is part of the inaugural exhibition – that appears to drape new over old.
The project follows the Broad Museum in Los Angeles and the McMurtry Building for the Department of Art & Art History at Stanford University to become the third Diller Scofidio + Renfro building in California to open within the span of less than six months.
These photos give a peek of the new BAMPFA and some highlights from Architecture of Life.
Oxford Street east elevation: The DS+R addition "peels away" to offer a peek inside the building through a glass storefront. (Photo by Iwan Baan. Courtesy of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, EHDD, and BAMPFA)
Southeast corner at Oxford and Center Streets: The entrance to BAMPFA is found on Center Street, below the cantilevered Babette cafe. (Photo by Iwan Baan. Courtesy of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, EHDD, and BAMPFA)
View from the northeast: An outdoor LED screen and small plaza on the north side of the addition provides a space for outdoor films. (Photo by Iwan Baan. Courtesy of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, EHDD, and BAMPFA)
View from the lobby: The main corridor leads to the galleries and Barbro Osher Theater, while the orange color draws attention to the cafe upstairs. (Photo by Iwan Baan. Courtesy of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, EHDD, and BAMPFA)
View of ground-floor gallery: Openings in the trusses give glimpses into the cafe above. (Photo by Iwan Baan. Courtesy of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, EHDD, and BAMPFA)
Babette cafe: The second-floor cantilever provides views to the south over Center Street. (Photo by Iwan Baan. Courtesy of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, EHDD, and BAMPFA)
Architecture of Life, on view at the University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, January 31–May 29, 2016. Installation view of Qiu Zhijie: The World Garden. (Photo: Sibilia Savage)
Architecture of Life, on view at the University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, January 31–May 29, 2016. Installation view of works by Tomás Saraceno. (Photo: Sibilia Savage)
Lebbeus Woods: Sarajevo, from War and Architecture, 1993; graphite and colored pencil on board; 10 5⁄8 x 12 7⁄8 in. (Image: © Estate of Lebbeus Woods)
Iannis Xenakis: Graphic score for Metastasis, glissandi of chords, 1954; graphite on graph paper; 8 1⁄2 x 10 7⁄8 in. (Image: Courtesy of the Xenakis family, Paris)
