Planning for the Future
The Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute is distinguished among the museums of the world by the quality of its collections, the depth of its public and academic programs, and the natural beauty of its pastoral setting. Since opening in 1955, the Clark has remained committed to its dual mission as a public art museum and a center for research and higher education.
In seeking to support this dual mission, the Clark is working with Pritzker Prize–winning architect Tadao Ando and landscape architects Reed Hilderbrand Associates to design a campus plan that enhances the Institute's setting, expands the facilities for its public and academic programs, and reconfigures its galleries to broaden the ways in which visitors experience works of art. The expansion plan brings new unity to the campus, fully integrating the Clark's buildings with Stone Hill and the surrounding landscape.
Phase I, Stone Hill Center, opened on June 22, 2008, and features a 32,000-square-foot facility that houses new, intimately scaled galleries, a meeting and studio art classroom, and the Williamstown Art Conservation Center, the largest regional conservation center in the country. Located on a wooded hillside, Stone Hill Center will reinforce the Clark's unique standing as one of the only major art museums in the world located in a dramatic rural setting. The new galleries will present exhibitions highlighting the Clark's collection as well as works representing periods and cultures not currently shown at the Clark. A terrace affords magnificent views of the Taconic Range and Green Mountains, and a new network of scenic trails and walking paths integrates the building into the landscape.
View of Main Campus from Stone Hill with Phase II Exhibition, Conference, and Visitor Center
Entry façade of Exhibition, Conference, and Visitor Center
Winter view of Phase II building
Phase II of the Clark's expansion, also designed by Tadao Ando, includes a second, new building: the Exhibition, Visitor, and Conference Center, which will house new special exhibition galleries and provide much-needed additional space for conferences and symposia. A dramatic reflecting pool will connect all of the buildings on the main campus and reorient them toward the beauty of Stone Hill. Improved visitor amenities, including a new shop and restaurant in the Exhibition, Visitor, and Conference Center, will support the Clark’s role as a public art museum. The project also includes the renovation by Selldorf Architects of the two existing buildings—the original museum that houses the permanent collection and new gallery space for American art and decorative arts. The Manton Research Center that currently serves as the main visitor entrance will be renovated to provide more space for the Clark’s library and its special collection of works on paper.
Phase II: Exhibition, Conference, and Visitor Center
Project Highlights
- A one-and-a-half-acre reflecting pool that brings unity to the campus, and in the winter can serve as a public skating pond
- Galleries for the Clark's special exhibition program
- Newly renovated galleries for American and decorative art
- An auditorium and conference center to accommodate a wide range of museum and academic programs
- Expanded visitor amenities, including a full-service restaurant, café, museum shop, and family activity room
Design Architect
Tadao Ando Architect & Associates, Osaka, Japan
Landscape Architect
Reed Hilderbrand Associates, Watertown, MA
Architect of Record
Gensler, New York, NY
Phase II: Museum Building and Manton Research Center
Project Highlights
- Newly renovated galleries for American and decorative art
- Study center for works on paper
- Public reading room
Design Architect
Selldorf Architects, New York, NY
Landscape Architect
Reed Hilderbrand Associates, Watertown, MA
Executive Architect
Gensler, New York, NY
