Feeling Groovy http://www.contractmagazine.com/contract/content_display/design/features/corporate-design/e3i9e7f602573f2a544d7222505b2801cac?imw=Y
Sept 15, 2008 -By Katie Weeks, Photography by Wyatt Gallery and Kevin Reeves One field, three days, 32 musicians, more than 400,000 peoplethe Woodstock Music and Art Fair was a cultural phenomenon that continues to entice people today. But what was it, exactly, that drew thousands to this bucolic site in Bethel, N.Y., in August 1969? And what is it that, nearly 40 years later, continues to draw pilgrims (albeit in smaller numbers)? The new Museum at Bethel Woods, designed by Westlake Reed Leskosky (WRL) in conjunction with exhibit designers Gallagher & Associates, seeks to help answer these questions. For nearly 30 years after the festival, Woodstock site visitors were met with little more than a simple monument and rolling fields. In 1996, however, things began to change. Recognizing the draw of such a storied locale, local entrepreneur, cable television pioneer, and philanthropist Alan Gerry saw an opportunity. "I was trying to create something that would bring back some of the attractiveness of the area that was a very popular resort area in the '30s, '40s, and '50s. I wanted to do something for the community where I had grown up," says the Gerry Foundation founder. What first started out as a plan for the Bethel Woods Performing Arts Center soon morphed into the more cohesive, $100-million Bethel Woods Center for the Arts comprising not only a 15,000-seat outdoor performing arts venue, but also an elaborate museum dedicated to both the phenomena of Woodstock and the events of the decade superceding it. Recognizing that the performing arts center would be seasonal, Gerry sought to add a site component that would draw smaller crowds year-round. "We noticed that people would come to the site just to view it or walk on the land. We thought that putting an information center there would make it more welcoming, and that developed into the museum. It's a serious building that tells the story of the 1960s, which was rich with historical events." On the exterior, the museum was crafted with a specific sense of regionality and a materials palette of warm woods, copper, and stone that draws from the land. These materials not only connect the architecture to the site, but also allowed the project to use local craftsmen. "We tried to break down the scale as much as possible and make the structures in a way they could be built by the local trades without too much heavy equipment," says Paul Westlake, AIA, principal at WRL. "A lot was crafted by hand. The work is connected to the past because you sense the hand of the people who made it." Definitely not small scale are the soaring interiors of the museum's column-free lobby and events gallery. The stunning timber ceiling draws inspiration from old, round stone barns that the Shakers constructed throughout the Northeast and the traditional architecture of the Catskills. The museum's laminated wood arches (a structural marvel that in one spot spans 110 ft.) also reference the original tents and wood-framed structures that were on site during the Festival, while windows are placed to allow intermittent views to the landscape, blurring the lines between indoors and out. Programmatically, the exhibits creatively recall the festival and the events that lead to it through a variety of media. "When you're talking about an event that had lots of performances, activity, music, and sound, the moment of being there is the critical thing to express, and that's hard to do. You're not recreating the event, nor can you pretend you have the ability to recreate 500,000 people in a field in upstate New York," says Dr. Dennis Barrie, director of cultural planning and associate at WRL. "But you at least want to give people some sense of why the music was so powerful and moving and what is was like to be in the midst of all those people." Adds Phil LiBassi, AIA, principal at WRL: "It's a fine line to walk without glamorizing it. The story is what allowed an event like that to happen." To help tell this story, the 6,728-sq.-ft. permanent exhibit gallery hosts 20 films (including "The Festival Experience," a four-screen, 270-degree immersion of the festival tucked under the 60-ft. pinnacle of the museum, and "The Bus," a psychedelic coach whose windshield transforms into a screen showcasing many cross-country journeys to Woodstock.) More than 2,000 music, film, and photographic elements are used, with 330 photos reprinted on panels and murals. Alongside the permanent exhibit space, the museum houses classrooms, a 1,252-sq.-ft. museum shop, a Museum Bistro, a 4,340-sq.-ft. events gallery that can support a 400-person reception, and a 1,000-seat, Roman-style outdoor amphitheater. "We wanted spaces that would draw people in," says Patrick Gallagher. "If I've been there a couple of times, what's going to draw me back?" In the end, the exhibits are meant to start a conversation, not dictate the past. "A museum's job is not to tell an encyclopedic story, but to go through the main ideas and give you an emotional connection," says Gallagher. "You have to open up the idea. It's not your job to tell the full breadth of the story, but to open the debate and discussion." With this in mind, the museum is tailored so that visitors end their time in an area of reflection that invites them to leave their own story about how Woodstock and the 1960s affected them. The result, some might say, creates a true mix of peace, love, and understanding. who Project: The Museum at Bethel Woods. Client: Gerry Foundation, Bethel Woods Center for the Arts. Architect, interior designer, structural/mechanical/electrical engineer: Westlake Reed Leskosky. Exhibit Designer: Gallagher & Associates; Patrick Gallagher, principal; Rob Malootian, senior designer; Carl Rhodes, Hernán Saurit, designers; Vassiana Gargallo, graphic designer; Cheryl Tlam, senior graphic designer; Ray Heinsman, detailer. Construction manager: Suffolk Construction. Lighting designer: George Sexton Associates. Acoustician: Jaffe Holden Acoustics, Inc. Furniture dealer: Office Furniture Partnership. Lighting: Ted Mather Lighting Design. A/V systems designer: Romeantics Productions. Content consultants: Dennis Barry, Robert Santelli. Writer/researcher: History Associates Inc. Owner's rep: Zubatkin Owner Representation. Computer interactives: Second Story Interactive Studios. Film producers: Cortina Production, The History Channel; Northern Light Production. Exhibit fabrication: Hadley Exhibits Inc. A/V systems integration: McCann Systems. Lighting integration: PRG. Photographer: Kevin G. Reeves (exterior); Wyatt Gallery (interior). what Wallcoverings: Versa Contract Wallcoverings. Paneling: Custom Cherry. Paint: Benjamin Moore, Cabot. Laminate: Wilsonart. Dry wall: National Gypsum; Gold Bond. Fabric Wrapped Acoustical Panels: Decoustics with Knoll Textiles. Special Surfacing: Quartz: Zodiac by Dupont. Solid Surfacing Material: Corian by Dupont, Gibralter by Wilsonart. Masonry: Federal Block. Flooring: PermaGrain. Carpet/carpet tile: Mohawk Broadloom Carpet. Carpet fiber: Colorstrand Fiber. Carpet backing: Woven backing interlaced into pile. Ceiling: USG "Frost" with Clima Plus. Acoustical Ceilings/Suspension Grid: USG. Lighting: Alera-Lighting; Alkco; American Glass Light; Bega; Belfer; Cole; Columbia' Edison Price Lighting; Elliptipar; Kenall; Prescolite; Rambusch Lighting. Task Lighting: Prescolite, Columbia, Alkco. Doors: Pella; Eggars; Curries; Cornel. Door hardware: Select Products Limited; Stanley; Hagar; PBB Inc.; Corbin Russwin; Schlage; Von Duprin; Adams Rite; Rockwood Mfr'g; Norton; National Guard Products; Rocky Mountain. Window frames: Pella. Shutters: Summit Hill Plantation Shutters; Solar Shades: Lutron/VIMCO. Railings: NS Associates. Clerical workstations and seating, administrative desks and seating, lobby seating, library and conference seating and tables, seating upholstery, wood casegoods, files: Kimball Office. Administrative and conference room upholstery: Momentum Textiles, Acacia, Kimball Office. Lounge seating: Martin Brattrud. Cafeteria, dining, seating: Kimball Office, KI. Auditorium seating/Upholstery: Irwin Seating Company; Dant Clayton Corp., ARC-COM. Display cases/vitrines: Hadley Exhibits, Inc. Other seating: Martin Brattrud. Upholstery: Arc-Com Fabrics, Maharam, Kimball Office. Other tables: Krug, Nucraft, KI, Kimball Office. Receptacles: Victor Stanley. Architectural woodworking: BOJ; Leby Fixtures & Interiors Ltd. Cabinetmaking: BOJ; Leby Fixtures & Interiors Ltd. Signage: Bunting. Elevators: Thyssen Krupp. HVAC: Reiner. Fire safety: Sprinklers: Sullivan Fire Protection Corp. Security: Bosch. Building management system: Johnson Controls. Plumbing fixtures: Assorted; Flush valves by Sloan. where Location: Bethel, NY. Total floor area: 40,000 sq. ft. permanent immersive exhibition space; 132-seat theatre, classrooms; retail shop; special events gallery; administrative office; 4,340 sq. ft. events gallery; museum bistro, outdoor museum terrace; 1,000-seat terrace stage. No. of floors: Two. Average floor size: Overall building: 20,000 sq. ft. Capacity crowd: 350, first level exhibit; 263, lower level Exhibit; 132-seat theatre; 19, lower level administration . --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Sixties-L" group. 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