Frye Art Museum

The Frye Art Museum, located in Seattle, used to have a very uninviting, unwelcoming entry that was not working in their favor. The architect wanted to create an entrance that was rather a visitor’s experience in which incorporated a sequence of entries rather than what was previously considered their entry to the museum. The new entrance consisted of a water pool that was very calm, which relates to the environment of a museum, and a ramp that implied everyone is welcome and everyone is to use the same entrance. With the use of the ramp for the entrance, everyone can experience the same entry the same way. The use for the doors that are incorporated at the entrance to the building was described as “gates of knowledge, intellectuals, and art.” The entrance, exterior and interior, are both very well lit and open to daylight. The experience throughout the museum would be much more inviting during the day because of the use of daylight and openness that the natural light provides. The interior entrance, which consists of a dome ceiling with a light hole at the top, brought the most of my attention to the design. When standing underneath the light hole at the top of the half sphere ceiling, it is a sense of organization and direction without the museum as if you are to look straight, left, or right, you can see the three different paths there are to take once you enter the museum. I found this site visit interesting because it really emphasizes the importance of daylight in any space, not just a museum, although it is critical to incorporate it in museums to keep the people interested and not bored.