Culture & Museums
From museums, to theaters, to community-based centers, we create purposeful, elevated experiences that welcome, educate, and entertain diverse audiences and resonate with museum and cultural institution clients, donors, staff, and stakeholders.
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The best museum design integrates a variety of experiences to meet visitors’ changing expectations and ensure all community members feel like they belong.
—Michael Volk, Culture & Museums leader
27 Items
Newark Community Museum of Social Justice
Newark, New Jersey
Gensler worked closely with the City of Newark to convert the 1st Police Precinct into a community museum for learning, healing, and storytelling.
Brooklyn Public Library, Brooklyn Heights Branch
Brooklyn, New York
Gensler’s redesign of the Brooklyn Public Library, Brooklyn Heights Branch, the largest branch in Brooklyn, represents a welcoming change for the neighborhood landmark.
Frisco Public Library
Frisco, Texas
The reimagined Frisco Public Library is an adaptive reuse project that gives new life to a structure that once manufactured both rockets and chicken nuggets.
Jackie Robinson Museum
New York, New York
The Jackie Robinson Museum presents the life of the first African American inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in a dynamic setting, designed by Gensler.
Guulabaa (Place of Koala)
Cowarra State Forest, New South Wales, Australia
Gensler is designing the front-of-house visitor experience for the nature-based tourism project, Guulabaa, or Place of Koala, in Cowarra State Forest.
Fair Park Fitzhugh Parking Structure
Dallas, Texas
The updated Fair Park masterplan includes a 14-acre community park and a parking garage to capture displaced surface parking.
Debbie Allen Dance Academy
Los Angeles, California
Gensler partnered with the Debbie Allen Dance Academy to design its new Shonda Rhimes Performing Arts Center, a top-tier arts venue that supports the nonprofit organization’s commitment to expanding the reach of dance and theater arts to enrich the lives of young dancers.
Klyde Warren Park 2.0
Dallas, Texas
Klyde Warren Park is an urban deck park built over the recessed Woodall Rodgers Freeway in Dallas, Texas.
Kaleideum (Formerly Children’s Museum of Winston-Salem and SciWorks)
Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Forsyth County is renovating a five-story, 70,000-square-foot building in downtown Winston-Salem that will be home to an innovative children’s museum.
Air Force Flight Test Museum and STEM Center
Palmdale, California
To increase public access and inspire the next generation of pilots and explorers, the Air Force Flight Test Foundation is relocating the Flight Test Museum outside the gates of Edwards Air Force Base. As part of the Foundation’s fundraising efforts, Gensler developed a conceptual design for the reimagined museum.
Yantai Ba Jiao Bay Culture Exhibition Center
Yantai, Shandong Province, China
The Yantai Ba Jiao Bay Culture Exhibition Center, an addition to the existing city center program, features complementary architecture and landscaping language that seamlessly creates a cohesive entity, combining existing site conditions.
First Unitarian Church Fellowship Hall
Dallas, Texas
After dedicating more than 120 years to promoting diversity and inclusion, First Unitarian Church became too small to accommodate its growing congregation. A new fellowship hall was designed by Gensler to create a welcoming experience that fosters strong bonds of community.
Holcomb Family YMCA
Spring, Texas
Gensler reimagined the design of the Holcomb Family YMCA from a traditional building to a facility with flexible indoor-outdoor spaces where members can gather and exercise together.
Lijia Smart Hall
Chongqing, China
Located in Chongqing Lijia Intelligent Park, the Lijia Smart Hall is the central stage for the annual Smart China Expo, promoting smart technologies.
LaGrange Art Museum
LaGrange, Georgia
The reimagined LaGrange Art Museum will act as the gateway to historic downtown LaGrange — respecting its storied character and mirroring its local fabric while providing a canvas for universal appeal with Southern hospitality at its heart.
Academy Museum of Motion Pictures
Los Angeles, California
Gensler collaborated with Renzo Piano Building Workshop to transform a 230,000-square-foot historic landmark structure into the lively Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, which encompasses more than 50,000 square feet of gallery space, theaters, education labs, offices, conservation facilities, a restaurant, and a retail store.
Sanya Yazhou Bay Science and Technology City
Sanya, China
Sanya Yazhou Bay Science and Technology City Industry Promotion Center is the gateway to the entire CMG Deep Ocean Technology City, which is dedicated to promoting the latest deep sea ocean research.
SAY Sí Community Arts Center
San Antonio, Texas
SAY Sí (San Antonio Youth Yes) ignites the creative power of young people as forces of positive change, empowers marginalized communities by investing in and elevating the value of artists, and advances cultural education.
Beth Yeshurun Sophia and Jack Bender Memorial Chapel
Houston, Texas
Founded by the Bender siblings to honor their parents, this cemetery chapel is the first conditioned funeral chapel for any Houston congregation.
Yulin Grand Theatre
Yulin, China
Yulin Grand Theatre is a 41,500-square-meter cultural destination with art galleries, shopping centers, hotel, and residential spaces. The design, rooted in the concept of a 'culture valley,' explores the relationship between art and culture as a generator of creativity, education, economic development, and tourism.
International Center of Photography
New York, New York
The world’s leading institution dedicated to photography and visual culture, the International Center of Photography (ICP) enlisted Gensler to realize its 20-year goal of unifying its museum and school under one roof.
Boston Center for the Arts: Brand Design
Boston, Massachusetts
Gensler partnered with the Boston Center for the Arts to reinvent its brand as a vibrant arts incubator with a bright palette and active character.
The Museum of Modern Art
New York, New York
MoMA’s multi-year expansion project had three comprehensive drivers: increase gallery space to exhibit the diverse collection in new interdisciplinary ways; provide visitors with a more inclusive experience; and better connect the Museum to the urban fabric of the city.
The Museum of Modern Art: Signage and Wayfinding Program
New York, New York
Coinciding with the highly anticipated 2019 expansion, MoMA commissioned Gensler to create a campus-wide signage, wayfinding, and donor recognition system.
Pavillon Notre-Dame
Paris, France
Gensler’s design for the Pavillon Notre-Dame — which would be located in the cathedral’s iconic Parvis Square — intends to offer a beacon of hope to Parisians and international visitors while the 850-year-old cathedral is being restored.
American Kennel Club Museum of the Dog
New York, New York
Centered around the relationship between humans and dogs, American Kennel Club’s (AKC) Museum of the Dog activates the AKC’s mission with a visitor experience that educates, engages, and entertains.
“GameXPloration” at Saint Louis Science Center
St. Louis, Missouri
The St. Louis Science Center’s “GameXPloration” harnesses the idea of gamification and turns the visitor experience into a real-life game that delights.
INSIGHTS
Blog
Immersive Experiences: A Movement Beyond Fad
In the rapidly evolving technology landscape in the built environment, immersive digital experiences are not a fleeting fad; they have become an expectation.
Blog
Beyond Books, Libraries Are Vital Community Hubs
Beyond their traditional role as information providers, municipal libraries are uniquely positioned to have a positive impact on the communities they serve.
Blog
Equity and the 20-Minute Neighborhood
To build stronger, more resilient, and equitable communities it’s essential that we leverage the power of research and engage residents.
Podcast
What Is the Architect’s Role in Creating Equitable Communities?
Contributors of an AIA resource share how architects can bring about racially just and equitable outcomes for all members of the communities they serve.
Blog
Libraries Are Crucial Social Infrastructure for the 20-Minute City
Once known solely as places for books, libraries are pivoting and adapting to adopt new roles in society.
Blog
Creating Spaces That Evoke Joy Through Immersive Design
How can physical spaces evoke joy? Design needs to incorporate multiple characteristics and fully engage our senses to be considered an immersive experience.
Blog
Rethinking What Museums Can Do for Communities — and How We Design Them
With the right vision and design experience, museums can be spaces to both educate and entertain audiences in deeper ways, inspiring them to become better stewards of our communities.
Blog
How Inside-Out Design Can Boost the Cultural Experience
Designing spaces that are meant for the public requires a different approach — one that is bespoke, transparent, and equitable.
Blog
A YMCA Facility Reconceptualized to Prioritize Wellness and Community
As a facility that had to be reconceptualized and designed during the pandemic, the Holcomb Family YMCA in Spring, Texas is designed to help members maintain healthy lifestyles and stay connected with the community.
Research
Models for Co-Creation and Partnership with the Black Community
We investigated how Gensler can empower and engage Black communities with inclusive design models of partnership.
Blog
The Future of the Museum Experience: Diverse, Inclusive, and Digital
In this episode of the Gensler Design Exchange podcast, we explore how museums are adapting to changing visitor expectations in an increasingly digital world.
Insight
Design Forecast 2022: Culture & Museums
During recent disruptions and shutdowns, cultural institutions redesigned their physical spaces and overhauled their operations, aiming to maximize attendance and reimagine their role in the community.
Blog
How Architects and Designers Can Continue to Prioritize Inclusivity
Roger Smith and Lisa Cholmondeley, co-directors of Gensler’s Center for Research on Equity and the Built Environment, talk about designing for diversity, equity, and inclusion, and what lies ahead.
Blog
The Future of Live Music Venues
After analyzing pre-COVID trends, the industry’s pandemic response, and projections of post-vaccine preferences, we’ve identified six design and programmatic modifications that guide the development of the ideal music venue.
Blog
Designing a Black-Owned Gallery to Elevate Artists of Color
At Gallery 90220, a new Black-owned art space in South L.A., Gensler's designers leveraged the power of design to literally create a platform to share the stories of artists of color.
CULTURE & MUSEUMS DESIGN TRENDS TO WATCH
Cultural destinations will continue to be essential community infrastructure.
Libraries and museums are adapting to new roles, partnering with like-minded organizations, and providing fundamental community functions rather than serving as ancillary spaces. Community asset mapping and strategic planning will help these institutions integrate within their communities to become more accessible, equitable community hubs.
Creating more equitable and accessible experiences will become table stakes for both staff and visitors.
For mission-driven institutions, creating more equitable and accessible experiences for people with different interests, backgrounds, and abilities is paramount. Institutions should focus on visitors, as well as staff, by providing a range of choices, more transparency between front and back of house, and breaking down hierarchies to create more equitable environments.
A diverse mix of analog and immersive experiences will help reach new audiences.
To grow new audiences, cultural institutions should provide a range of experiences in their spaces — from analog to ambient immersive experiences using hands-free technologies and one-of-a-kind designs — rather than pushing visitors to hardware such as VR headsets. This offers diverse audiences more choices and different entry points and levels of engagement.
CULTURE & MUSEUMS LEADERSHIP
Michael Volk
Culture & Museums Leader, Design Director, Principal
With more than 28 years of experience designing, leading, and executing innovative architecture and urbanism projects in the U.S. and abroad, Michael brings his passion for design...
NEWS
In The Media
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WTOP
A New Interactive Education Experience Is Coming to Pennsylvania Avenue
WTOP featured plans for “The People’s House: A White House Experience,” an interactive three-story education experience designed by Gensler.
November 03, 2023
In The Media
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American Libraries
The Frisco Public Library Featured in American Libraries’ 2023 Library Design Showcase
American Libraries featured the “most impressive new and renovated libraries,” including the Gensler-designed Frisco Public Library.
September 01, 2023
In The Media
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The Dallas Morning News
Designed by Gensler, Frisco Public Library Opens as the Sixth Largest Library in Texas
The Dallas Morning News quoted Gensler’s Justin Bashaw, who shared insights on the design vision for the new Frisco Public Library.
March 17, 2023
In The Media
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Archinect
Archinect Celebrated The Year’s Top Efforts to Further Social Justice, Equity, and Representation in the Industry
The Jackie Robinson Museum and Gensler’s contributions to California College of the Arts to support diversity and innovation are among the top efforts to further social justice and equity in architecture.
December 25, 2022
In The Media
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Interior Design
The International Center of Photography Merges its Museum and School in One Hip Locale
Gensler’s Mark Morton discusses the design strategy which merges its museum and school into one hub “with both downtown edge and 21st century polish.”
November 02, 2022
In The Media
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Fast Company
The Newly Opened Jackie Robinson Museum Focuses on Citizenship and Humanity At Large
Hans Neubert, Digital Experience Design Leader, explains how the Gensler-designed museum celebrates the athlete and also “calls people to action.”
September 20, 2022
In The Media
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Los Angeles Times
How Debbie Allen and Shonda Rhimes Built the New Home of the Debbie Allen Dance Academy
Debbie Allen and Shonda Rhimes partnered to create the Debbie Allen Dance Academy, designed by Gensler, inside the Rhimes Performing Arts Center.
May 08, 2022
In The Media
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Dezeen
Dezeen Shared a Vision to Reimagine the Flight Test Museum in California
Gensler’s plans feature an expanded wing-shaped roof area, a viewing platform, museum space for historic aircraft, and outdoor exhibition areas.
March 07, 2022
Recognition
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Building Design+Construction
Gensler
2021 Giants 400: #1 Cultural Facilities Architecture and AE Firm
November 19, 2021
In The Media
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Architectural Record
Architectural Record Spotlighted the $482 Million Museum Academy of Motion Pictures Complex
Gensler served as the executive architect on the new Museum Academy of Motion Pictures, working with Renzo Piano Building Workshop to transform a historic landmark structure.
September 21, 2021
In The Media
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Archinect
This Black-Owned and Operated Gallery in South Los Angeles Is Designed to Empower Emerging and Underrepresented Artists of Color
Gensler LA's Kevin Sherrod shares the design story behind Galley 90220, a gallery on a mission to give back to Black and brown artists and residents.
August 05, 2021
In The Media
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The Architect’s Newspaper
The Benton Art Museum at Pomona College Brings Mediterranean Flair
The Architect’s Newspaper featured The Benton Art Museum at Pomona College, designed by the Boston-based Machado Silvetti with Gensler Los Angeles serving as the architect of record.
July 20, 2021
In The Media
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Interior Design Magazine
Interior Design Magazine Takes a Virtual Tour of The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures
Gensler collaborated with Renzo Piano Building Workshop to transform the historic May Company building along L.A.’s Miracle Mile into the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.
April 12, 2021
In The Media
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Interior Design Magazine
How Gensler Transformed a Former Warehouse to Create the Shonda Rhimes Performing Arts Center, Home of Debbie Allen Dance Academy
Interior Design highlighted how the firm transformed a warehouse in Los Angeles into the Shonda Rhimes Performing Arts Center, home of DADA, to create a place where budding dancers can see people who look just like them.
July 13, 2020
In The Media
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Wallpaper*
Wallpaper Explores How MoMA’s Expansion by DS+R and Gensler Prioritizes Connection
The re-envisioned MoMA boasts a new Creativity Lab, much-needed gallery space, a flagship store, cafe, reconfigured circulation, and an outdoor terrace.
October 14, 2019
Recognition
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Commercial Observer
Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice
Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice receives 2019 Design of the Year Award.
June 14, 2019