When the

Saint

Louis Art

Museum

opens the

doors of its

new

building

June 29,

visitors

will

witness

architect

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Saint Louis Art Museumexpansion painted LEED GoldApr 5, 2013, 5:00am CDT

David

Chipperfield’s

vision for

adding

onto an

iconic

structure

that has

been a

part of

Forest

Park since

1904.

However,

this $130

million

East

Building

will debut

with Gold

certification

through

the U.S.

Green

Building

Council’s

Leadership

in Energy

and

Environmental

Design

(LEED)

program

because of

its “green”

building

practices

and

sustainability.

“LEED

Gold

certification

means

that Saint

Louis Art

Museum

has built a

very

socially

responsible

building

while

providing

the

citizens of

the St.

Louis

region a

premier

facility to

view art,”

said Roger

McFarland,

group vice

president

in St.

Louis for

HOK, the

architect

of record

for the

expansion.

The

construction

of the new

facility

involved

innovative

collaboration

between

David

Chipperfield

Architects

and HOK.

“HOK

signed a

unique

arrangement

with the

Saint

Louis Art

Museum

and David

Chipperfield’s

office in

which it

was a

three-

party

agreement

where

both firms

worked

directly

for the

museum,”

McFarland

said. “In

(HOK’s)

role, we

were

responsible

for

coordinating

all

technical

issues,

leadership

of the

engineering

and

consulting

teams and

the

delivery of

the

project.”

During

construction,

more than

97 percent

of landfill

waste

created by

the

building

process

was

diverted

and

reused,

according

to

museum

officials.

An

additional

82 percent

of wood

building

material

used in the

construction

process

was

harvested

from

forest

areas

certified

by the

Forest

Stewardship

Council

(FSC) and

the new

parking

garage will

include

partial

covering

by a green

roof that

has 30

inches of

dirt, grass

and plants

to

minimize

heat

absorption

from the

sun. The

new

parking

garage will

feature

reserved

spaces for

both fuel

efficient

cars and

low

emissions

vehicles.

Inside and

out, low-

flow

plumbing

for

restaurants

and

kitchen

spaces will

curtail

water use,

while

irrigation

and

storm-

water

management

systems

will

diminish

soil

erosion. A

new boiler

system

will

service the

entire

museum

campus,

while a

computerized

system

delivers

under-

the-floor

air

distribution

that

respects

the

fragility of

the

museum

collection.

“The

expansion

will allow

the

museum

to put

more

master

works on

view in

both the

East

Building’s

extensive

new

galleries

and in

renovated

and

reinstalled

galleries of

the iconic,

Cass

Gilbert-

designed

Main

Building,”

said

Matthew

Hathaway,

spokesman

for the

Saint

Louis Art

Museum.

“In

addition,

the

expansion

will allow

the

museum

to upgrade

amenities,

including

a 300-car,

underground

parking

garage and

a 2,500-

square-

foot

restaurant.”

The

museum

was

awarded

LEED Gold

certification

March 11.

LEED

provides

third-

party

verification

from the

USGBC,

which

certifies

sustainable

building

projects at

Platinum,

Silver and

Gold

levels.

Tarlton

Pepper

KAI,

comprised

of the

Tarlton

Corp. of

St. Louis,

Pepper

Communication

Group of

Chicago

and KAI

Design &

Build of St.

Louis, is

the

general

contractor

for the

expansion.

Chipperfield

of David

Chipperfield

Architects,

which is

based in

London

and Berlin,

is known

for his

previous

work such

as the

Museum

of Modern

Literature

in

Germany

and the

Hepworth

Wakefield

gallery in

the U.K.

More than

1,500 jobs,

including

200 full-

time

construction

positions

and about

40

subcontractors,

are

involved

in the

project.

The art

museum

will add 25

full-time

employees

to serve

visitors

when the

new

building

opens to

the public.

Construction

began in

January

2010.

According

to a 2011

study by

the St.

Louis

Regional

Chamber,

the project

is

expected

to

generate a

total

economic

impact of

$250

million in

St. Louis.

BeyondSimpleDesign

In 2006,

the Saint

Louis Art

Museum’s

commissioners

selected

HOK, a St.

Louis-

based

design,

architecture,

engineering

and

planning

firm with

more than

24 offices

around the

world, as

the

architect

of record

for the

East

Building

expansion

project.

HOK,

which had

2012

revenue of

$406

million, is

merging

contemporary

architecture

with

sustainable

design in

the 21 new

galleries

built in the

new

facility.

The

expansion

will

provide 30

percent

more

gallery

space for

the

museum

while

minimizing

the

environmental

impact

created by

construction.

The East

Building

will

feature

ceiling to

floor

windows,

an oak

floor, a

100-seat

restaurant

and a

renovated

auditorium.

Materials

used for

the

building

include

glass and

stone

polished

to

replicate

the

original

style of the

existing

Saint

Louis Art

Museum.

The

concrete

used for

construction

is made

with

minerals

and rocks

from the

Missouri

River.

“The team

of

architects

and

contractors

working

on the

project

exceeded

rigorous

sustainability

standards

while not

compromising

either the

visitor

experience

or the

painstakingly

controlled

indoor

environment

where

works

from the

museum’s

collection

will be

displayed,”

said

Rebecca

Nolan,

HOK’s

senior vice

president

and

managing

principal.

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