Baltimore Museum of Art
Master Plan
Baltimore, MD

Completion: 2005
Size: 125,000 GSF (renovation)
112,000 GSF (new construction)

Ayers/Saint/Gross was asked to develop the Architectural Master Plan for the Baltimore Museum of Art. The plan would address renovation and expansion needs for the next 20 years. Designed by renowned neoclassical architect John Russell Pope in 1929, the BMA has grown during the past 75 years to encompass nine additions including an auditorium, restaurant and gallery space. The first three additions followed Pope’s original plan; the remaining did not. The East Wing added in 1982 shifted the public entrance from Pope’s grand neoclassical portico to a lobby space for a new restaurant, shop and auditorium. The museum will benefit from a return to the basic planning principles evident in the original building.

The Master Plan was designed with the goal of enhancing the Museum as a cultural asset for the community and tourists by:

• Providing a more welcoming and accessible entrance
• Reinstalling the BMA’s world class collection
• Strengthening ties with the academic community, particularly is neighbor Johns Hopkins University to the north

Architectural goals for the plan include the following:

• Clarify public circulation both vertically and horizontally so that visitors can move with ease through the building
• Create an exciting, inspirational visitor experience so that there are moments when the artwork resonates
• Create a “heart” for the museum; a place in which people will gather and meet
• Improve and expand gallery space while removing it from the ground floor
• Improve and expand office and support space
• Improve the configuration and lay-out of the departments and galleries

The proposed plan creates a major north-south axis through the Museum by reopening the Pope entrance, installing a glass roof over the existing Schaefer Court and adding a new north entrance that creates a face toward Johns Hopkins University. A new east-west axis is created by the demarcation of a new corridor connecting the west and east wing stair lobbies, Schaefer Court and the new north entrance. This, coupled with new elevators and stairs from the ground to first and first to second floors will enable visitors to move easily through the building. Additions will house the north entrance, a new library, gallery and support space.