HHF architekten + Ai Weiwei

Description

The Artfarm is located near Salt Point in upstate New York (1.5 hour drive from the city), on the site of an existing private residence built in the eighties. The client is an art collector and owner of Chambers Fine Art, a well-known gallery located in New York City and Beijing, specializing in contemporary Chinese art. The building is designed as a gallery for a professional art collection. On the interior it is subdivided into different sized showrooms, an office space and designated spaces to store art. The outer shape is a consequence of the used pre-engineered and easy-to-assemble type of steel building, which is often used for agricultural purposes in the area. With its abstract metallic appearance the structure becomes an equal member of a whole group of sculptures spread out in the landscape. The three volumes are put on solid concrete slabs, which follow the existing grade on the site. The different levels are connected through a continuous cascading ramp on the middle axis. This middle hallway, with its ramp, serves as access for all spaces, allowing an easy way of exchanging big pieces of art between storage spaces and showrooms and functions at the same time as a picture gallery.