The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art International Design Competition

The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art International Design Competition now is over!

The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art International Design Competition: The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art International Design Competition titled ’Creating a Museum for All’ is a global open call for an outstanding architect-led multi-disciplinary team to design a world-class addition for one of the United States’ finest art museums.

➜ Short description

The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art International Competition is a global open call to design a world-class addition for one of the United States’ finest art museums.

This is an open search for an architect-led multidisciplinary team to design a new addition(s) and reconfigure and renovate existing spaces to position the museum to serve its growing and increasingly diverse audience and future generations.

The competition runs in two stages, with the first stage deadline on October 29, 2024. During the second stage, a public exhibition of the finalists’ concept designs will be held at the museum and the winner will be announced in Spring 2025. Once a winner has been selected, the museum will work with them to identify a partner design firm registered to practice in the State of Missouri. Based in Kansas City, Missouri, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art cares for a superlative collection of more than 42,000 art objects and is best known for its extensive Asian art, European and American paintings, photography, modern sculpture, African, Native American and Egyptian galleries.

Offering free admission to all, and funded by private support, the museum is nationally and internationally acclaimed and serves a broad region within a 300-mile radius.

Rarely is a museum gifted with two architectural icons. Here, the first, an original Beaux Arts monument, was funded by the visionary legacies of William Rockhill Nelson, founder of The Kansas City Star and civic leader, and Mary McAfee Atkins, an educator turned arts philanthropist. The second, the much-admired and innovative Bloch Building by Steven Holl in 2007, introduced a luminous presence: large glass sculptures that descend the expansive hilltop site in a series of ​“lenses”.

Now the museum is embarking on a third evolution in response to rising and increasingly diverse attendance and a rapidly growing city. The capital campaign associated with this initiative will be the single biggest investment in the arts in Kansas City in recent years (funded by private not public tax dollars) and contribute to the city’s future dynamism and vitality.

The museum aims to become a beacon of inclusivity, creativity and social connections. Strategically, the museum’s Board of Trustees is intent on expanding the conventions of the museum, so it becomes a more dynamic, open and inviting place – a place where everyone feels they belong: a Nelson-Atkins for All. No design is required at the first stage. Rather, teams will need to study the Search Statement, and submit their approach to the project, team composition and relevant experience, as well as company details.

At the second stage, up to five teams will be selected to engage with the museum and prepare concept designs. An exhibition of the finalist concept designs will be held at the museum in Spring 2025 and the schemes will also be available to view online, giving the community an opportunity to view the submissions and give their feedback before the museum’s Architect Selection Committee meets to interview the finalists and recommend a winner for The Nelson-Atkins Board of Trustees’ ratification.

➜ Who may enter?

The competition warmly welcomes US, international, emerging and established studios.

➜ Prize:

Each of the five finalist teams will receive a competition fee of $75,000 at the conclusion of the process.