Comments on: BLOCH BUILDING by Steven Holl

By: Patti Bussett

Patti Bussett — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 02:41:37 +0000

I, too, am a life long resident of this odd mix of town and metropolis, and grew up playing at the feet of the now-famous Quan Yin statue which resides in the most venerable of all our lovely galleries in this space. My mother was in the first child’s art class in the Nelson, in the 1930’s. I feel deeply, inexorably connected to this space, both the old and the new, and its contents. I too was mortified by the placement of Claes and Brujie Von Oldenburgs’ playful works on the venerable lawn. But Marc (and his wife, Elizabeth) Wilson (Museum Director) have had excellent instincts about when this institution has been in danger of fossilization. They and their board of Trustees have made the right choice of architect. I say this because this midwestern museum has -always- harbored a sense of majesty and eternity in its collections–the ancient Chinese scrolls and Buddhist sculpture, the great paintings of Europe, the particular contemporary leanings towards sculptors such as Henry Moore and Noguchi, whose work is both human and also containing a very timeless stillness–therefore, the choice of an architect who has bestowed upon us this incarnated light–light itself being the most timeless of elements (unless we face a nuclear war and are denied the sun for several years) was perfect. I just heard him speak at the opening this evening, and he spoke of holding ideals closely, and sacrificing the pedestrian for those ideals. I am content with these glowing boxes on the lawn. Very content. If anything, I believe the boxes do not take much risk at all–but I know they do. In these distracted modernist times, to be daringly classical is in itself a risk. P

By: Mary Lou Clifton

Mary Lou Clifton — Thu, 10 May 2007 02:55:57 +0000

I am a resident of Kansas City, Missouri, educated, well-traveled, well-read. I resent the foisting of the shuttle-cocks on the lawn of the Nelson, hair curler columns on I-35-I-70 coming through the heart of the city and now this anomaly known as the Bloch Building. The magnificent Nelson-Atkins Museum deserves better than the shock value this effort delivers. The generosity of the Blochs to this city is legendary, and I’m certain many agree with the accolades for this building, but I feel like one of the minions viewing the Emperor’s new clothes.

By: Bologna Pona

Bologna Pona — Wed, 02 May 2007 02:11:57 +0000

I’m not so sure that it is “green” but the building is forward thinking with lighting. Which, in turn, will decrease energy consumption

By: heri siswanto

heri siswanto — Sun, 29 Apr 2007 00:16:50 +0000

good looking but can someone tell me why i dont feel green there?

By: Ben

Ben — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 22:36:41 +0000

I too got a small tour of this building. Three things I liked (other than the obvious).

1. Fantastic handrails!

2. The “stich” track lighting (visible in the bottom picture), much less distracting than at other new buildings (MOMA, DeYoung).

3. (the big one). The Nelson is forgoing admission fees, so you can enter and exit at any point in the museum– you can leave, walk on the green roof, and reenter at another point. This is FANTASTIC and entirely unprecedented.

By: Richie

Richie — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 14:21:50 +0000

I’ve always felt that the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain was too much… as it seemed to really ‘try’ so very hard to ‘compete’ with the artwork that it was built to display. This building, in contrast, is very beautiful and truly a work of Art itself, as it’s both a building and an inhabitable sculpture… yet, it leaves the space required to allow the Art it displays to be the main focus. This is a great design. Congratulations to all. (Is it possible to dim the lights at night ? Are there provisions built into the design that would allow for additional lighting to be installed, if deemed necessary at some future time… without destroying the clean flowing lines of this design ?)

By: Randall

Randall — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 07:44:37 +0000

One more reason to go visit KC. I can’t think of other reasons at the moment, but I’m sure I’ll be pleasantly surprised.

By: Bryce

Bryce — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 00:19:32 +0000

As a long time Kansas City resident I’m looking forward to the opening of this space. Until then, I’ll just enjoy seeing it from the outside.

By: Marc Fink

Marc Fink — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 16:24:52 +0000

The white vertical planks of custom LINIT channel glass comprise the lenses of Steven Holl’s Bloch Building at the Nelson-Atkins Museum. The LINIT brand of channel glass, manufactured by Lamberts in Germany, is imported to the USA by Bendheim Wall Systems. With over 100,000 square feet of LINIT channel glass, the Bloch Building is easily the largest channel glass project in the country. LINIT channel glass is also a key design element on Steven Holl’s 2007 AIA New York Chapter Honor Award winning Central Section of Higgins Hall at Pratt Institute and new Swiss Embassy residence.. Why is LINIT channel glass installed on this stellar projects? No other channel glass source gives as much critical support to the architect and valuable assistance to the glazier as Bendheim Wall Systems does. To use LINIT channel glass to enhance your distinctive designs, call me at 800-221-7379 X 223 or email me at mfink@bendheimwall.com. Thank you.

By: Tyler

Tyler — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 15:08:58 +0000

This is wonderful! This serves of a perfect example of the ability to create unique interior spaces without compromising the clean feeling of natural light. Also the contrast of the interior and exterior spaces is brilliant. Good stuff. We need more of this!