Architecture News

The Clark Art Institute Unveils Design for New Wing by Selldorf Architects

Clark Art Institute new wing renderings — Image: Design by Selldorf Architects, rendering by Playtime
Rendering depicting view of the Clark Institute from South Street in Williamstown, Massachusetts.

Architects & Firms

The Clark Art Institute has unveiled the design for a new wing, a permanent home for the Aso O. Tavitian Collection.

Among the most significant private collections of European art assembled in the 21st century and one of the largest gifts in the Clark’s history, the collection—donated the Williamstown, Massachusetts, institution in 2024 from the foundation of the late philanthropist Aso O. Tavitian—includes 132 paintings, 130 sculptures, 39 drawings, and 30 decorative arts objects.

The new wing that will house it, designed by New York–based Selldorf Architects, comprises twelve galleries on a single level, with art storage and support spaces below. It will connect the main museum building, a white Danby marble structure designed by Daniel Perry and opened in 1955, and the red granite-clad Manton Research Center, designed by Pietro Belluschi with The Architects Collaborative and opened in 1973. Both buildings were previously renovated by Selldorf, in 2014 and 2017 respectively. Also no stranger to the Clark, landscape architect Reed Hilderbrand will again collaborate with Selldorf on this latest project on the pastoral 140-acre grounds in the Berkshires. (The campus also includes two buildings by Tadao Ando.)

Renderings of the Clark Art Institute as seen from Stone Hill (1); view looking north (2); gallery view (3). Images by Playtime (1,2), Selldorf Architects (3)

Like the Manton Research Center and the museum building, the facade of the new addition will be made of stone, a multicolored veined marble in tones that complement those of the adjacent structures. “It will be a ‘companion’ to them," says Annabelle Selldorf, firm founder. Accordingly, the wing's architectural expression is understated. “It is a rectangle with a window. It is that simple,” she says of the wing’s east facade. The west elevation, facing the campus and its reflecting pools, will have a corresponding opening. In addition, there will be one “heavenly skylight,” Selldorf notes.

Visitors to the Clark can see the new collection in An Exquisite Eye: Introducing the Aso O. Tavitian Collection. Featuring 150 highlights drawn from the complete collection of 331 works, the exhibition will remain on view through February 21, 2027.

The foundation’s gift provides $45 million to endow two new positions on the Clark’s curatorial staff to oversee the collection, support its long-term care, and fund the construction of the new building. Completion of the wing is slated for 2028.