EXTENDED USE / TOP HONOR

Entry Name: Sandhills Center at the Knight Museum, Alliance, Nebraska
Firm: RDG Planning & Design
Owner: Bob Knight
Photographer: Tom Kessler

The Sandhills of Nebraska is a vast native grassland that shelters 2925 million acre feet of ground water (the Ogallala Aquifer) and covers nearly 20,000 square miles in northern and northwestern Nebraska. Historically, Native Americans called this land their home, but over the past 200 years it has developed into railroad hubs, ranchland, and farmland. With these indicators in mind, we wanted to make a museum that became an essay on the Sandhills.

As one enters the renovated museum, the new atrium is filled with natural daylight, washing cast-in-place concrete walls with a texture meant to evoke that of the original sod homes of the settlers.  The reception area is located within the atrium, giving full view to the various programmatic elements of the museum.  Slotted and framed openings within the atrium walls allow the visitor controlled views into the galleries ahead. A large glass curtain wall at the end of the museum provides panoramic views of the city park beyond.

Jury Comments: The existing building is redefined and the expansion is seamlessly engaged, creating a completely new visitor experience. The minimal surface treatments, the modest presentation of materials, and the wash of daylight work together to create a rich embrace.