Glass Pavilion:

Toledo Museum of Art

Toledo, Ohio

Owner: Matt Goodman

Architect: Mike Muehrer

Structural: Mike Luther

MEP: Jennifer Hesson

Construction: Kelly
Greuel

December 11

th

, 2006

Toledo, Ohio

• Birthplace of Glass Art Movement

• Edward Libbey

• 1930’s 10,000 Unemployed

The Glass Pavilion

• Built on Parking Lot

and Greenery

• $30 Million

• Cleaning

"The design is about carrying along the
museum's tradition of being open and
transparent to the public."

— Kazuyo Sejima, lead museum architect,
SANAA   

 

• 1895 Edward Drummond Libbey & Michael
Owens

•Owens-Illinois Glass Company: Largest producers of glass
bottles in the nation

Why Glass?

(Brief History)

•Toledo Glass Company: Manufactured light bulbs in
conjunction with General Electric

Museum addition will
house many of the
museums glass exhibits

•Glass Pavilion design needed to
compliment Frank Gehry’s
University of Toledo’s Center for
the Visual Arts

Design Considerations

•Preserve surrounding trees that
are up to 150 years old

•Style of museum addition
must fit the nearby Victorian-
style housing district

Sejima and Nishizawa and Associates Ltd.

Kazuyo
Sejima

Ryue
Nishizawa

•Contemporary “futuristic
style”

•Incorporate natural elements: sunlight, space /
openness and simplicity

-Use transparent and

translucent materials

•Majority of projects are art galleries /
museums

•Established in 1995, but still
maintain independent practices

•The Glass Pavilion in Toledo was their first project
outside Japan!

Zollverein School of
Design,

-Essen,

Germany

Current Projects

New Museum of Contemporary
Art -New York City

Institute of Modern
Art

-

Valencia, Spain

Structural

Structural

Engineer

– Guy Nordenson and

Associates

Consulting Structural

Engineer

– Sasaki and Partners

http://www.nordenson.com

Columns and Roof

http://www.arcspace.com/architects/sejima_nishizawa/glass/glass.html

• Steel columns 3.5 in and 4.25 in diameter

• Columns pinned at ceiling

• Girder positioned to follow columns

Lateral Support

• 3 braced

frames below
the roof deck

• Oval room

enclosed in
steel plate

Mechanical Systems

• Main Issues:

– Glass walls from floor to ceiling

• Ornamental steel stands for controls, switches, and

humidity sensors

– Continuous concrete slab floor

• 500 separate penetrations in slab for air ducts, wiring,

and
sprinkler system

– Neighbors can see roof

• By request, no

mechanical equipment
could be placed on roof

Recovery and Reuse System

• Diverse needs for heating and humidity

– Delicate artwork
– 2000°F furnace

• Bubbles within bubbles

help heat regulation

• Specially designed

curtains play a key role
in controlling temps

Environmental

• Site is located in historical area

– Victorian-style housing district
– Dense growth of 150-year old trees

Construction

•General and Concrete
Contractor: Rudolph/Libbe
Inc.

•Project Manager: Lowell
Metzger

•Completed multiple
museum projects

•20

th

Project completed for

Toledo Museum of Art

•Oversaw 47 subcontractors

“Toledo Museum of Art: The Glass Pavilion.” 2005.
<http://www.toledomuseum.org/GlassCenter_main.htm>

Construction

Fabrication of Glass
Panels:

•Fabricated in China
•Each panel was placed into
a custom metal frame

•Heated in an oven until the
panels relaxed into the
desired curve needed

•Interior: 91 flat panels

129 curved panels

•Exterior: 92 flat panels

30 curved panels.

Bacon, Sheila. “Through the Looking Glass.” What We Build. September/October
2006.

<http://constructoragc.construction.com/features/build/archives/2006-

09toledo.asp>

Placement of glass panels:

• Built from the inside out
• Required Blueboard insulation and

protective tape

• Two crews worked on placement
• Embedded floor and ceiling tracks were

installed

• Specially fabricated forklift and crane

were used

Construction

• Preplanning was

extensive

• Weekly meetings held
• Metric and English units

were watched carefully

• 2.44-meter by 2.44-

meter grid system

• Precision was KEY!

Bacon, Sheila. “Through the Looking Glass.” What We
Build.

September/October 2006.

<http://constructoragc.construction.com/features/build/
archives/2006-09toledo.asp>

Questions???