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| Gary Cooper and Henry Hull discuss the possibilities of modern architecture in The Fountainhead (1949) |
So what’s it going to look like, and who’s going to design it? The fact is, we can’t answer that just yet, but we are on the path that will get us there.
Here’s a peek into the process we’ve developed for making such an important decision.
Try to define the universe.
The Museum Committee began by gathering lists of architects – firms with international reputations, firms considered rising stars, architects known as inspired “enfants terribles” and those known as solid performers. The Committee talked to architecture critics, museum directors and architects themselves to make sure it didn’t overlook the perfect firm. The list of potential architects grew to about 150 firms before the Committee was done.
Develop important criteria.
To whittle down the big list, the Museum Committee discussed which criteria were the most important. The Committee decided that the firm should have completed a significant building in the United States. It should have worked on a museum or civic building of comparable size to the imagined campus. It should boast a staff sizable enough to handle the length and breadth of the project timeline. In addition, the Committee hoped to find a firm with experience in California, because of the state’s unique light qualities, climate, and seismic activity.
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| Cary Grant, Myrna Loy and Melvyn Douglas embark on their own construction project in the comedy Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948) |
Research, research, research. Then cut.
Slowly but surely, the Committee honed the big list. Over a number of lively meetings, it discussed each firm, weighing strengths and weaknesses, considering the personality of the lead architect as well as the types and sizes of buildings the firm has completed, the extent of its portfolio, its design philosophy and the aesthetic merits of the buildings the firm has designed. After careful consideration, the list was whittled to 32 firms that the Committee believes have the greatest potential to successfully design the Academy’s museum.
The Request for Qualifications and beyond.
In mid-October, those lucky 32 firms received a Request for Qualifications (not unlike the request sent to exhibition design firms, though with a decidedly different focus). The responses will be carefully assessed, and the plan is to choose 8 to 12 semifinalists. Those semifinalists will be given an assignment that will provide the Committee a clearer sense of the firm’s working style and approach. After a thorough evaluation of the assignment, the Committee will choose three to four finalists to present more fully developed approaches for the project.
Which finalist will win the coveted assignment is anyone’s guess at this point, but the final decision is expected by the middle of 2007.
