Architectural Aquarelle

Located on 5th Ave in New York City, the American Watercolor Society (also known as the Salmagundi Club) undergoes a fictional renovation after a fire destroys everything but the building facade. The facade becomes a relic as the new structure supports the Society’s collection of artwork. The new museum introduces a scaffolding that shores the adjacent brownstones and a rooftop “lens,” bringing light down into the building’s core. Watercolor was used as a means of architectural rendering in response to the museum’s generous collection.

WATERCOLOR PROCESS

facade studies

preliminary plans in watercolor

Both the rear facade and the interior spaces explored the architectural manifestation of “watercolor space,” insofar as the use of light, varying degrees of transparency and overlapping figures or zones create a richness of spatial perception and articulation.