In the futurist spirit of World’s Fairs, the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art has commissioned the “Sun Pavilion,” the eco-friendliest of temporary structures, to sit in the Kansas City Sculpture Park during their forthcoming design exhibition, “Inventing the Modern World: Decorative Arts at the World's Fairs, 1851-1939." Not only is the “Sun Pavilion” made of shipping containers, its most interesting feature is its fragmented canopy of solar panels, a result of Kansas City-based Generator Studio architects' collaboration with LA-based artist Tm Gratkowski.
"Tm likes to use found materials. His artwork uses an approach of layering many different components to make one big gesture, which influenced the unfolding of the canopy," head architect Mike Kress told ARTINFO. (Gratkowski is well-versed in refuse reuse, too — he frequently works with what he calls “reclaimed” paper, a.k.a. garbage.) With a tight budget of only $20,000, a short timeline to build, and rigid restrictions on how much they could alter the site, shipping containers seemed to be the perfect solution to the parameters set by the design competition, and their corrugated surfaces add a raw, deconstructivist look to the strucutre. A jury that included NAMA curator and AIA Gold Medal-winning architect Steven Holl selected what they believed was the most innovative of designs submitted to their competition.
The exhibition will include plenty of other gems hailing from 80 years' worth of world's fairs — two centuries-old Baccarat glassware, furniture by Gilbert Rohde, even a papier-mâché piano.
“Inventing the Modern World: Decorative Arts at the World's Fairs, 1851-1939” is on view at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art from April 14 through August 19.