The Nancy and Rich Kinder Building, Museum of Fine Arts

The 25m high Nancy and Rich Kinder Building was one of three new spaces constructed as part of the redevelopment of the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Texas. The striking building houses international collections of modern and contemporary art.

The outside of the building is almost entirely wrapped in translucent glass tubes (a ‘cool jacket’). As well as serving as a design element, the glass tubes regulate daylight and control energy in the building. A luminous canopy covering the structure opens up to the Texas sky.

Brand: Gartner

Architect: Steven Holl Architects

Client: McCarthy Building Companies

Owner: Museum of Fine Arts

The project

The concept

The semi-circular glass tubes are fastened using invisible fixing – the result of extensive mock-ups and testing. The roof of the building consists of a geometric free form, featuring a variety of irregular concave segments closed by curved vertical glazing. The roof’s substructure consists of an aluminium frame bent as a helix. The use of partly transparent and partly translucent glass allows diffuse, shadow-free daylight to enter exhibition areas.

What did we do?

We designed, engineered, manufactured and installed 4,700 sqm of ‘cool jacket’ curtain wall façades made of hot-bent semicircular glass tubes. We also provided 2,300 sqm of stick-system steel façades for the inner courtyards and 500 sqm of clerestory glazing.