The American Museum of Natural History in New York City has unveiled a new building, an architectural masterpiece, the Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education, and Innovation. The new building features world-class research facilities, scientific collections, classrooms, and beautiful exhibitions. The 230,000-square-foot, $465 million building was designed by Studio Gang, led by Jeanne Gang and it includes six floors above ground and one below. It creates 33 connections among the Museum buildings, seamlessly linking the entire campus and establishing a new entrance on the Museum’s west side, at Columbus Avenue and 79th Street. The undulating façade, clad in Milford pink granite, evokes geological layering strata and the rich surface masonry on the Museum’s 77th Street side.
Inside the Gilder Center, visitors are greeted by the five-story Kenneth C. Griffin Exploration Atrium, a grand space illuminated with natural light pouring through large-scale skylights. The building’s design is inspired by the ways in which wind and water carve out exciting landscapes, as well as the forms that hot water etches in blocks of ice. The bridges and openings connect visitors physically and visually to multiple levels housing new exhibition galleries, education spaces, and collections facilities.
The north side of the building houses the Susan and Peter J. Solomon Family Insectarium, dedicated to the vital role insects play in our planet’s ecosystems. It features 18 species of live insects, digital exhibits, models, and pinned specimens, providing visitors with an up-close look at the world’s most diverse group of animals. Oversized models of honeybees mounted overhead draw visitors through the gallery toward a monumental 8,000-lb resin model of a beehive at the west end.
Directly above the Insectarium visitors can explore the 2,500-square-foot Davis Family Butterfly Vivarium, mingle with up to 1,000 live butterflies, learn about the butterfly life cycle.
On the third floor of the Gilder Center visitors will find Invisible Worlds, a 360-degree immersive science-and-art show with projections that present a view of networks of life at all scales. The looping 12-minute immersive experience reveals how all life on Earth is interconnected: from the building blocks of DNA to ecological interdependencies in a Brazilian rainforest, a bay in the Pacific Ocean, the center of New York City, and to the neural network within the human brain.
The Gilder Center is a groundbreaking project that enhances the visitor experience by establishing continuous pathways through its four-block campus, connecting buildings constructed over nearly 150 years. It represents a new era for the Museum and reinforces its central role in scientific discovery through engaging exhibits and programs. Visitors can now move seamlessly from the entrance on Columbus Avenue all the way through to Central Park West, or vice versa.
The center also features a table-service restaurant overlooking the Griffin Atrium and two shops.
For more information about the Gilder Center, becoming a Member of the Museum, or purchasing tickets, please visit amnh.org/GilderCenter.
Visit amnh.org for more information.
