SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Contemporary art is getting a prominent new pedestal in Santa Fe with the architectural transformation of a warehouse venue into a full-blown museum.
SITE Santa Fe on Friday inaugurated a sweeping expansion and redesign of a former beer warehouse to add a snack bar, museum shop, lecture hall, outdoor "sky terrace," educational workshop space and an admission-free introductory gallery.
The redesign also adds new climate controls to a non-collecting contemporary art museum that displays borrowed works from across the globe.
Visitors pass into the revamped building through an overhanging aluminum lattice, designed by New York-based SHoP Architects as a deliberate departure from Santa Fe's adobe-dominated skyline.
The overhaul adds luster to redevelopment efforts in the city's railyard district. SITE Santa Fe is expanding operations to seven days a week.