Following an intensive architect selection process that began last fall (but did not require design proposals according to Snøhetta co-founder Craig Dykers), the 75-year-old institution chose Snøhetta from a group of four short-listed firms that included Adjaye Associates, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, and Foster + Partners. The expansion will connect to the current building, designed by Mario Botta and opened in 1995, and open out to Howard Street in the Bay City’s SoMa neighborhood. (A fire station that currently occupies the site will be rebuilt elsewhere.)

 

Though the exact program and size of the new building is yet to be determined, according to Dykers, “We want to create a setting with natural light, views, and fresh air within a relatively constrained urban condition, and make a museum that responds to the 21st-century visitor and the community.” Another main design objective for Dykers is to form a symbiotic relationship with the sometimes-maligned Botta building. “People have been very critical of the Botta design, but it is a strong building with a clear character,” Dykers says. “I’m much more interested in working with that than with a weak building.”