Seminal Kahn Building at Yale

The Yale University Art Gallery, the oldest college art museum in the USA and a seminal work by architect Louis Kahn will reopen to the public on 10 December following a three-year $ 44million renovation. That meticulous restoration, undertaken by Polshek Partnership Architects of New York City, returns the building to its original purity while introducing updated building systems for the optimal preservation of the Gallery’s encyclopedic collection. Constructed of masonry, glass and steel, the building is acclaimed for its bold geometry of its design, its daring use of space and light, and its structural and engineering innovations. Highlights of the restoration include the complete replacement of the building’s signature window-walls, using modern materials, refurbishment of the concrete tetrahedral ceilings which house the electrical and ventilation systems; reinstatement of the original open-space layout of the galleries; and transformation of the first-floor lobby into an inviting information center and gathering space.