Prize(s) Winners in Visitor Experience & Museum Exhibition
Company Anita Jorgensen Lighting Design
Lead Designers Anita Jorgensen
Architecture Company Selldorf Architects
Client The Frick Collection
Photo Credits Joseph Coscia Jr.
Other Credits Exhibition Designer: Stephen Saitas Designs
Completion Date 3/18/2021
Project Location New York, New York
Entry DescriptionIn a major renovation, the private home of Henry Clay Frick is undergoing its first comprehensive upgrade since the institution opened to the public in 1935. While the historic permanent home of The Frick Collection is in construction, the Old Masters collection is being housed in the iconic Marcel Breuer-designed building on Madison Avenue. This temporary home provides public access to the Frick’s celebrated collections during a time when they would otherwise be inaccessible.
Unlike the mansion’s Gilded Age setting, the curatorial and design teams for Frick Madison took their cue from the building’s modernist architecture, resulting in a stark, contemporary appearance. Existing 1960s track lights were modified to enhance the lighting distribution. The lighting approach consisted of three layers: 1) Walls are brushed with a soft 5-7fc wash of light. 2) The paintings are highlighted at 18-27fc without creating harsh blobs of light. 3) Ambient 5fc light evenly illuminates the floor.
Per the Financial Times, “…the perfect way to see the masterpieces for the first time. Perfectly lit, generously spaced, and hung at eye level against gunmetal grey walls, they seem to glow from within.
