KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Artannounced Thursday the six finalists and their designs for an expansion and transformation of the museum.
Starting Saturday, March 15, visitors will have the opportunity to see the designs in person at the museum in a free exhibit running through June 1. The museum has also established an online portal where the public can see the different designs and offer feedback.
The six finalists represent entries from teams across the world, including Tokyo, Genoa, New York (X2), Chicago and Los Angeles.
The competition was initially announced in June 2024.
The six finalists were chosen through a months-long review process that started in October 2024. The competition attracted 182 teams from 30 countries on six continents.
“These six concept designs articulate six unique visions of a new and even more dynamic Nelson-Atkins,” Nelson-Atkins Board of Trustees and Architect Selection Committee Chair Evelyn Craft Belger said in Thursday’s announcement. “This is a thrilling moment for the museum and our community when we start to visualize an identity that will carry us through the coming decades.”
After the public review process is completed on June 1, the museum’s Architect Selection Committee will conduct final interviews and make their recommendation to the museum’s Board of Trustees for final approval. The board would then work with the winner to refine the design and set a timetable for construction and completion.
“We asked for bold, inspiring moves that also respected the existing museum campus, and I’m so happy to say that we’ve received them in these initial designs,” Nelson-Atkins Director and CEO Julián Zugazagoitia said Thursday. “Each is a fascinating response to a complex project brief; Together, they bring myriad perspectives.”
Firms were asked to submit their ideas centered around a roughly 61,000-square-foot addition, a part-renovation of the original building and a strategy to activate and amplify the outdoor spaces surrounding the museum.
Regardless of the final cost, the budget will be funded entirely by private donations. The museum says the campaign would represent “the single biggest investment in the arts in Kansas City in recent years.”
The competition is being administered by London-based Malcolm Reading Consultants.
The finalists
(Click on the link for each project to read more about their vision.)
Kengo Kuma And Associates (Tokyo)
Renzo Piano Building Workshop (Genoa)
Selldorf Architects (New York)
Studio Gang (Chicago)
Weiss/Manfredi Architecture (New York)
WHY Architecture (Los Angeles)
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