If, as Plato put it, “Beauty is the splendor of truth,” then Magazzino, the museum designed and built by architect Miguel Quismondo for Nancy Olnick and Giorgio Spanu in New York’s Hudson Valley, is a paragon of beauty. Its starting point was truth, and the whole project has been carried out in the pursuit of truth. The result is a very beautiful building.
Utilitas
Functionally, the building is perfect. From the outset, it was conceived as an exhibition space to showcase one of the finest collections of Italian Arte Povera in the world. In terms of scale, proportions, and measurements, each and every part of this art space has been carefully designed to host this wonderful collection. The natural light that spills in from above is extraordinary and gives the entire interior space a unique quality.
Firmitas
The construction is perfect. All facets were studied and designed with utter precision. Both the simplicity of the structure and the materials chosen to create it are just right.
Venustas
According to the architectural precepts of Vitruvius, if the requirements of utilitas (function) and firmitas (stability) are fulfilled, venustas, or beauty, inexorably arrives. That is borne out here in this building of great beauty.
Magazzino’s location near Cold Spring, New York, close to Dia:Beacon in Beacon, New York, earmarks it as an essential spot to visit from New York City. Not surprisingly, the cultural circles in New York and beyond are already buzzing about Magazzino.
The Project
Magazzino (the name means “warehouse” in Italian) was created by refurbishing and expanding an old computer factory. An interesting roof structure and a series of openings carved out to frame eye-catching portions of the landscape beyond the building are among the highlights. The façade was given a textural finish that recalls the building’s original incarnation.
Another building, similar in size, was created parallel to the original one. This new building is considerably taller than the first and has a completely translucent roof, which means the interior is filled with wonderful light. It is the ideal space for the works of Arte Povera that will inhabit it—in tune with their underlying aesthetic, but original as well, so that it never feels slavishly imitative. Here, too, there are carefully positioned apertures that direct one’s gaze to specific positions in the surrounding landscape. Some of these openings overlap, which results in a tremendously effective enfilade of contrasting spatial relationships. The new building’s façade consists of exposed masonry.
The entrance to the complex is a ground level, transparent piece, like a bridge between two ships. It resembles a sheet of water skillfully positioned to reflect the sky. The contrast between this low, transparent point of entry and the tall exhibition-space “ships” flooded with light is stunning.
The floor plan is flawless, as is the organization of the various sections. Order is often said to be an essential quality of all architecture, and this entire project is well ordered. The result is a building of great clarity and serenity that functions perfectly as a museum.
Finale
Olnick Spanu’s Arte Povera collection of works is marvelous, and this is a case where the structure that has been adapted and built to house the art—as imagined by architect Miguel Quismondo—is its equal in beauty and mastery, a true wonder. What a joy to see Magazzino enter the world.