Adler Planetarium - Clark Family Welcome Gallery

Chicago, IL, United States

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InterContinental Miami Hotel Renovation

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Adler Planetarium - Clark Family Welcome Gallery

Chicago, IL, United States

Firm

Thomas Roszak Architecture

Type

Cultural › Gallery

STATUS

Built

YEAR

2011

SIZE

3000 sqft - 5000 sqft

BUDGET

$1M - 5M

Photos

Scott McDonald (6)

Roszak’s design of The Welcome Gallery at Chicago’s Adler Planetarium creates a multifunctional space that initiates a pre-show experience optimizing the main event, the Sky Theater. Movement through the gallery is delineated by cascading sheer fabric planes, which represent astronomical events over time. A wormhole connects the gallery to the main Sky Theater and is a hypothetical ‘shortcut’ through the space-time continuum. Aluminum tubing and polyester fabric constructed walls provide a dramatic design for the creation of space that feels other-worldly. “Fabricologists” were consulted, and a pure white polyester fabric was chosen, with precise, clean lines and the right amount of transparency when used in single and double layers. The chosen fabric reflects the space’s LED lighting, but also absorbs light where mixed-media video is projected on the fabric walls. Parametric modeling techniques were used to design the complex surfaces of the space. The 4,000 square foot plan is laid out such that by shifting one’s position in the gallery, one’s perception of space changes as the voids separate, join, expand, and contract. Extensive collaboration was undertaken with educators and experts in video, animation, sound, and lighting to create inspired interactive exhibits with layered projected images, motion-detecting light, and sound effects.