Exhibit | Zahner

100th Anniversary SMWIA

a Centennial celebration of monumental proportions

To celebrate the 1988 centennial of the Sheet Metal Workers International Association, the organization commissioned the then emerging architect, Frank Gehry, to design a temporary architectural structure to be placed inside the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C.

Engineered, fabricated, and installed through a collaborative process, the project was one of the first produced by Gehry with Zahner.

Zahner provided the four types of metal panel used to create the 65-foot-high structure: copper, polished brass, galvanized steel, and terne plate. The varying metal types and tones emphasized Gehry’s vision to represent a city in terms of ‘a collage of disparate pieces.’ Each panel, cut to various size, was placed in thoughtful juxtaposition, conveying a sense of organized chaos.

“

It’s like if you threw a bunch of objects into a can. You would still recognize them all. That’s what a city is, a collage of disparate pieces.

Frank O. Gehry

Zahner engineered, fabricated and installed of this custom sculptural form inside the National Building Museum. The installation was constructed for the Summer of 1988, afterwhich it was dismantled, repurposed and recycled.

The Smithsonian NMAI

August 15, 2016/in Interior Architecture Exhibit, LEED, Museum Washington D.C. Jones & Jones, SmithGroup Ramona Sakiestewa Charcoal, Gold, Green L 2004 /by cmorris

THE SMITHSONIAN National Museum of the American Indian

Zahner was selected for the production of several decorative and artistic elements for the National Museum for the American Indian (NMAI). The Smithsonian-owned NMAI is dedicated to the preservation, study, and exhibition of the life, languages, literature, history, and arts of Native Americans.

The architectural design process included a number of designers and artists, including artist Ramona Sakiestewa, architects Jones & Jones with SmithGroup, and exhibition designers at Gerald Hilferty.

Zahner worked with Hopi artist Ramona Sakiestewa to produce a copper screen wall, a permanent installation in the court of the museum which lines a walkway down to the open space. Copper was chosen to acknowledge the antiquity of the Indian people who lived in the Northeast. It was a widely used material in Mound Builder cultures, which stretched from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico, east of the Mississippi, over 2000 years ago.

Photograph of Ramona Sakiestewa (Artist) and Ilze Jones (Architect) for the Smithsonian NMAI

Photograph of Ramona Sakiestewa (Artist) and Ilze Jones (Architect) for the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C.

Photo © A. Zahner Company

Fabrication at Zahner HQ for the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C.

Photo © A. Zahner Company

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN IN WASHINGTON D.C.

PHOTO © A. ZAHNER COMPANY.

National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C.

Photo © A. Zahner Company

Potomac Room at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C.

Photo © A. Zahner Company

Copper screenwall for the National Museum for the American Indian in Washington D.C.

PHOTO © A. ZAHNER COMPANY.

Detail of the COPPER SCREENWALL

PHOTO © A. ZAHNER COMPANY.

National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C.

Photo © A. Zahner Company

PHOTO © A. ZAHNER COMPANY.

National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C.

Photo © A. Zahner Company

Morphosis Exhibit

August 15, 2016/in Interior Architecture Exhibit, Museum Paris--France Morphosis M 2006 /by cmorris

Morphosis Exhibit at Centre Pompidou

On display from March through July 2006, a sweeping exhibit entitled ‘Continuities of the Incomplete’ was displayed at the acclaimed Centre Pompidou in Paris, France.

The exhibition includes designs by Morphosis and features a Zahner-manufactured aluminum/glass floor and custom guardrail system. Zahner was brought into the project to produce the complex metal system which encases the glass floor as an exportable aluminum and glass system.

The design’s inclining floor encases a series of models, videos, and the entire thought-process of the architects at Morphosis and it’s founder, Thom Mayne. The structural raised floor begins at ground level and gradually raises to two feet. The structure was engineered to withstand the hundreds of people who would traffic the show.

Raised glass flooring with slow-pitch at the Centre Pompidou in Paris.

Video screens show Thom Mayne of Morphosis underneath the glass flooring.

Visitors walk across the raised glass floor in custom shoe-covers.

Various exhibit materials displayed underneath the raised floor.

The custom engineered fin structure was designed and produced by a small group of engineers, and the entire floor was shipped to France where it was installed, without ever pre-assembling it in the Zahner facility in Kansas City. Upon delivery in France, the same engineers who designed the structure also erected it, and the aluminum floor came together seamlessly.

Zahner has worked with Morphosis on a number of project. In Oregon, Zahner produced the stainless roof and wall panels on the Eugene Federal Courthouse; in New York City, Zahner provided the custom perforated stainless steel facade for the Cooper Union New Academic Building. See all of the projects completed by Zahner for Morphosis.

DESIGNING AND EXPORTING THE ALUMINUM AND GLASS FLOOR ASSEMBLY

The Morphosis Exhibit in Paris includes a structural raised aluminum and glass floor. The system is on a slow incline, which begins at ground level and gradually raises to two feet. The structure was engineered to withstand the hundreds of people who would traffic the show.

Zahner engineers worked closely with the Morphosis design team to craft a system which would support the weight and provide ease of assembly for the non-technical install team in Paris.

In Kansas City at the Zahner facility, a mockup was erected, which provided insight into the system and confidence in the design plan. The custom engineered fin structure was manufactured as parts, and a small group of engineers installed the project France. The system was entirely built in a digital model and shipped without ever pre-assembling it in the Kansas City facility. There in France, the same engineers who designed the structure also erected it, and the aluminum floor came together seamlessly.

Chihuly Bridge of Glass

August 15, 2016/in Exterior Architecture, Landscape Architecture Bridge, Exhibit, Museum, Pedestrian Bridge Tacoma--Washington Andersson-Wise Architects Dale Chihuly Blue, Grey M 2002 /by cmorris

Chihuly Bridge at the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, Washington

The Chihuly Bridge is a destination feature for Tacoma, Washington. Designed by Andersson-Wise Architects as an addition to the Tacoma Museum of Glass, the project provides a pedestrian bridge to downtown Tacoma. Made possible by a donation from Jim and Carolyn Milgard, the bridge crosses over major rail lines and links the Museum of Glass to Union Station and the State History Museum.

Zahner served as both the sole contractor and manufacturer in the production of the Chihuly Bridge of Glass. This construction included all structural steel, glazing and cladding elements as well as fiber optics and vacuum HVAC system within the cases.

Related Project

Museum of Glass

Zahner produced the metalwork for the glass bridge as well as the massive cone which can be identified throughout the downtown area. The cone was manufactured in stainless steel diamond panel system which was attached to a ZEPPS structural framework, each made by Zahner.

The system that Zahner used for the glass encasement of the artworks is the Drop Lock glass installation system, which allows for easy installation and sustainable maintenance. The system builds on Zahner’s patented Inverted Seam system for creating co-planar metal facades and roofs. The assembled panels provide rapid installation, require no silicone, and result in a visually clean edge with a dry look.

Visitors who walk across the bridge get a closer look at the work of artist Dale Chihuly. The bridge is divided into three sections:

— Seaform Pavilion: a glass ceiling and canopy system showcasing 2,364 works of Chihuly glass from his Seaform and Persian series.
— Crystal Towers: a permanent art installation by Chihuly, rising 40 feet above the bridge deck and serve as beacons of light.
— Venetian Wall: an eighty-foot long installation displaying 109 sculptures from three of Chihuly’s series: Venetians, Ikebana, and Putti.

Venetian Wall for the Chihuly Bridge of Glass, with Museum of Glass in the background

Pedestrians cross the Chihuly Bridge of Glass

Venetian Wall at the Chihuly Bridge of Glass

Seaform Pavilion at the Chihuly Bridge of Glass

Chihuly Bridge Seaform Pavilion, designed by Andersson Wise

Zahner field construction crew delivers the Seaform Pavilion for the Chihuly Bridge of Glass

Zahner field construction crew installs the Seaform Pavilion for the Chihuly Bridge of Glass

Plaque for the Venetian Wall at the Chihuly Bridge of Glass

Chihuly Bridge designed by Andersson Wise.

Press

US Glass Magazine – Chihuly Connections: New Bridge Creates A Link to Museum of Glass.
ArchNewsNow – Chihuly Bridge of Glass By Arthur W. Andersson, AIA/Andersson-Wise Architects