Vinoly to Design Duke's Nasher Museum of Art

Internationally renowned architect Rafael Vin has been selected to design the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, Executive Vice President Tallman Trask III of Duke announced Thursday. Vin's appointment follows a selection process that lasted more than a year and involved interviews with several other leading architects. "We are delighted that Rafael Vin has agreed to oversee the creation of our new museum of art," Trask said. "Mr. Vinoly is an exceptional architect, and his selection brings us one step closer to the establishment of a new facility for teaching, for attracting special exhibitions and for displaying our diverse holdings." Vin may be best known for his recent completion of the Tokyo International Forum, a $1.6 billion cultural center with an expansive glass hall and four exhibition spaces of varying sizes, the largest of which sits 5,000 people. Vin was selected from a worldwide open competition. Among the other major projects for which Vin is noted are the Regional Performing Arts Center in Philadelphia, the Princeton University Stadium in New Jersey and the Samsung Cultural and Education Center in Seoul, Korea. Construction of the $15 million Duke museum, expected to begin next year, has been made possible by a $7.5 million gift from Raymond D. Nasher, a Dallas art collector, philanthropist and real estate developer who graduated from Duke in 1943 with a B.A. in economics. Nasher also is a Duke trustee emeritus and his daughter, Nancy, is a 1979 Duke graduate and current member of the Duke Board of Trustees. "I am delighted that Duke has chosen Rafael Vin," Nasher said. "It will be an honor for me and my family to have our name on a building designed by such an internationally distinguished architect." The new museum will be a gathering place for students, faculty and the public and is expected to feature permanent collection galleries, a sculpture garden for the exhibition of outdoor works, an atrium and galleries for special exhibitions. It also is planned to include classrooms, offices and a cafebr> Vin will help select the final site for the museum from two possible locations near the intersection of Campus Drive and Anderson Street on Duke's West Campus. Michael Mezzatesta, director of the Duke University Museum of Art, said: "I am confident that Vin and his firm will design a singular and distinguished building. It will be a substantial addition to the cultural landscape of our region and an architectural landmark that will attract people from around the world."

Vin is the principal designer of Rafael Vin Architects, which he established in 1982. Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, he oversees practices in New York, Tokyo and Buenos Aires. "The chance to build a major museum for Duke University with the support and guidance of Ray Nasher is an opportunity that brings together the highest level of academic excellence and curatorial quality with the vision of one of the most significant patrons of contemporary art in recent times," Vin said. "The architecture of the building will reflect their goals within the context of this extraordinary campus." Vin completed his architectural studies at the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism at the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Shortly after that, he and several associates formed the Estudio de Arquitectura, which has gone on to become one of the largest architectural practices in South America. By 1974, the firm had won more than 50 competitions and built more than 9.5 million square feet of projects throughout South America. At the same time that Vin was pursuing an active architectural practice, he earned a master's degree at the University of Buenos Aires. He later joined the school's faculty and taught architectural theory in the graduate architecture program. In 1978, after a military coup in Argentina, Vin came to the United States as a guest lecturer, first at Washington University and then at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. He settled permanently in New York City in 1979, setting up an independent practice, and providing a wide array of architectural, interior design and urban planning services. It grew considerably in the years that followed. The firm's diverse work includes exhibition facilities; museums; performing arts centers; courthouses; athletic facilities; banks; hotels; shopping centers; residential commissions; and commercial, industrial, educational and communication facilities. The firm's projects range in scale from interior design for corporate offices, high-rise towers, retail stores and institutions to urban design and master planning for extensive commercial and waterfront developments and performing arts centers. The firm also has completed several projects involving the restoration and addition to large-scale buildings of significant historical and architectural landmark status. Vin, who continues to lecture at institutions such as Harvard University, Yale University and the Rhode Island School of Design, became a fellow of the American Institute of Architects in 1993 and is a member of the Japan Institute of Architects and the Sociedad Central Arquitectos in Argentina.