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Ruth and Raymond G. Perelman Building, Philadelphia Museum of Art

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Gluckman Mayner Architects

An addition and renovation of a historic office building provides extra space for a celebrated museum.

Sited on a two-acre parcel at the edge of Fairmount Park and across from the main Philadelphia Museum of Art building, the Perelman Building accommodates all of the components of a stand-alone museum: exhibition galleries, storage, event spaces, library, archives, café, museum store, conservation labs, and curatorial office and administrative spaces.  The project involved adding onto and renovating the former Fidelity/Reliance Insurance Building, which was profiled in RECORD in January 1928 and was designed by the firm of Zantzinger, Borie, and Medary—the same architects who designed the main museum. The building’s landmark Art Deco exterior has been carefully preserved along with select interiors, such as the elaborately finished, historically significant spaces.  The renovation takes advantage of the existing building’s well-proportioned spaces and abundant daylight to accommodate a diverse program.

Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art
Photo © Graydon Wood, courtesy Philadelphia Museum of Art

This project involved adding onto and renovating the former Fidelity/Reliance Insurance Building, designed by the firm Zantzinger, Borie, and Medary. RECORD profiled this historic structure in January 1928. Click here to read the original article.
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Gluckman’s new addition is a contemporary masonry box that uses a skylight gallery to connect to the historic structure and mediate their aesthetic differences.  Subterranean construction and extensive mechanical systems provide museum-quality climate control and fire protection for the collections and most other portions of the project. The new addition complements and supplements the best features of the historic building and negotiates the change in scale from the adjacent residential neighborhood to the institutional presence along the Parkway.

Formal name of project: Ruth and Raymond G. Perelman Building, Philadelphia Museum of Art

Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Gross square footage: 59,000 sq. ft. new building; 114,000 sq. ft. renovation

Total Project cost: $90 Million

Completion Date: September 2007

Building Owner: City of Philadelphia

Client: Philadelphia Museum of Art

Architect:
Gluckman Mayner Architects
250 Hudson Street, 10th Floor
New York, NY 10013
Ph: 212.929.0100
Fax: 212.929.0833
info@gluckmanmayner.com
www.gluckmanmayner.com

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