The Architect Behind the New Whitney Museum – Renzo Piano and his beautiful visions

In the words of Jerry Saltz à la Nina Simone, “It’s a new dawn. It’s a new day. It’s a new life” for the Whitney Museum of American Art. The museum reopens its doors in its new, hip, Meatpacking location May 1, 2015.

The man behind the redesign is Renzo Piano, an architect hailing from Genoa, Italy. He has been the creative force behind numerous projects around the world, won too many awards to count, and established a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting architectural professions.

For a quick overview of Piano’s oeuvre, here is a compilation of previous works designed by his firm, the Renzo Piano Building Workshop.

Centre Georges Pompidou 

Paris, France

Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France, 1971-1977.

Renzo Piano Building Workshop

Genoa, Italy

Renzo Piano Building Workshop, Genoa, Italy, 1989-1991.

Reconstruction of the Atelier Brancusi 

Paris, France

Zentrum Paul Klee

Bern, Switzerland

Zentrum Paul Klee, Bern, Switzerland, 1999-2005.

Renovation and Expansion of the Morgan Library

New York, U.S.A.

Renovation and Expansion of the Morgan Library, New York, U.S.A, 2000-2006

The New York Times Building

New York, U.S.A

The New York Times Building, New York, U.S.A, 2000-2007.

Renovation and Expansion of the Isabelle Stewart Gardener Museum

Boston, U.S.A.

And of course,

 

The Whitney Museum at Gansevoort

New York, U.S.A.

The Whitney Museum at Gansevoort, New York, U.S.A, 2007-2015.

 

If you can’t make your way to New York, here’s a sneak peak into the museum’s inaugural exhibition, America is Hard to See.

 What’s your take on the move downtown, the new architecture, and the future of the Whitney in general? Let us know in the comments!

 

*All images sourced from http://www.rpbw.com/, where you can see a ton of other awesome projects by the Renzo Piano Building Workshop.