CRYSTAL BRIDGES PAVILION

The BACHMAN WILSON HOUSE VIEWING PAVILION at the CRYSTAL BRIDGES MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART in Bentonville, Arkansas is well on its way to completion. The pavilion was designed by Pérez as part of a three semester teaching and research collaboration between the University of Arkansas, Fay Jones School of Architecture, and the Crystal Bridges Museum. Three separate groups of students, led by Pérez, developed initial research, presented preliminary designs to the museum administration, and ultimately fabricated and installed the nearly completed pavilion. This is part of a new initiative that Pérez is leading, termed “DESIGNFAB,” combining the best attributes of standardized construction, or “designbuild,” with digital design and production processes supporting highly customized, non-standard components and geometry.

The Pavilion will orient visitors to the newly acquired “USONIAN” house- the Bachman Wilson House, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and originally constructed in 1954. The BW House has been acquired by the museum and relocated from New Jersey to Arkansas, where it is being reconstructed on the museum grounds. Both the Viewing Pavilion and Bachman Wilson House are anticipated to open to the public by summer 2015.

For more information, follow the links below:

KUAF (NPR) Interview by Jacqueline Froelich: http://kuaf.com/post/crystal-bridges-museumua-collaborate-interpret-frank-lloyd-wright-house

Crystal Bridges Museum: http://crystalbridges.org/blog/designfab-students-bring-wright-21st-century/

Component Installation in Progress   2014

Component Diagram & Preliminary Mockup Panel   2014