"What's the Matter?" at R & Company in New York
The opportunity to adapt a 1869 cast iron storefront in Tribeca into a series of galleries inspired an design which spoke to the radicality – and hospitality – of R & Company. The spaces are simultaneously inviting and intriguing, creating an ideal environment to showcase diverse works of 20th and 21st century design.
The renovated spaces host two large showrooms, an academic research center, archives, offices, and a private viewing suite for the gallery. On the ground floor, WHY created a gallery that maximizes available square-footage for exhibits, while offering flexibility to subdivide the space as needed. The full scale of the gallery reveals itself with a three-story atrium, opening to the mezzanine floor and lower gallery.
A grand staircase of marble and brass leads visitors downstairs, while a lightwell against the back wall provides consistent daylight to the areas below. At the mezzanine, offices share space with an archive and research center which support R & Company’s mission to foster a closer study, appreciation, and preservation of 20th and 21st-century design. The lower level hosts additional gallery space as well as offices, a break room and pantry for the R & Company team.