Fougeron Architecture

The conversion of this existing concrete frame industrial building into a modern gallery space presented two different challenges: to design a minimalist gallery space that is not dull, and to design a front entrance lobby that is visually dramatic, yet inexpensive.

The 5,000 sq. ft. Hosfelt Gallery is organized into three different viewing rooms. There is one main gallery for large works, a smaller gallery for photographs and works on paper, and a windowless gallery behind the front entrance for video art. The administrative functions and offices are placed along the front façade, acting as a shield from direct sunlight for the gallery spaces beyond. The design clearly differentiates the old and the new. New gypsum board walls are held away from the existing walls, columns, and ceiling. They float as abstract planes in an otherwise unadorned and unimproved space. The rooms flow one into one another with open corners, simple white gypsum board planes extend from room to room. The viewer ‘s eye is in constant motion, looking beyond one room into the next, catching glimpses of Art from a multitude of angles. The design for the inside of the gallery is minimalist, satisfying the client's desire for a gallery that is about the display of Art and not about boutique architecture.

The shared main entrance to the galleries is through an existing loading dock. In the morning, the garage door is rolled up and the gallery entrance reveals itself. It is a powerful space where visitors are invited to reflect on the nature of Art viewing. It is here that the visitors are on display themselves for a few seconds as they walk up the concrete ramp and enter into the gallery. It is also a place of transition and contradiction, where the people of a decayed neighborhood, and the people of cultured world that hides behind closed doors, meet. It is purposefully left open to both.

The entry is clad in sandblasted glass panels, which are held away from the walls with custom steel clips. They are abstract and tough (graffiti-poof and waterproof). The glass is back light with neon tubes, and it is the only source of artificial lighting for the space.