santa fe warehouse-to-art gallery project gets boost

A Santa Fe warehouse built more than one hundred years ago will soon see work transforming it into a unique museum and artists’ studio space.

The historic structure at 2118 S. Guadalupe Street, is a part of the larger Santa Fe Railyards and for years served as the home to New Mexico’s State Records Center and Archives.

More than two years ago, officials with the New Mexico Museum of Art decided that the warehouse with its high ceiling and brick walls would make for a great exhibition space, launching a campaign to raise $10 million to pay for the building’s upgrading and renovation.

That effort has now been considerably bolstered with a $4 million donation from Santa Fe art patrons Robert and Ellen Vladem. Robert Vladem has served as a member of the Georgia O’Keefe Museum’s board of trustees, as well as a member of the board of directors of the Santa Fe Opera.

The transformation project, under the design of the Albuquerque-based architectural firms of DNCA Architects and Studio GP, will see the construction of a second story with an emphasis on light filtering through a facade of perforated metal.

A repurposing of space on the ground floor will allow for the creation of a gallery and lobby, while the basement of the building will be used for storage and a workshop.

With $7.7 million now secured, museum officials expect to raise the final $2.3 million for the project in the months ahead through the Museum of New Mexico Foundation’s  Centennial Campaign.

Current plans call for work on what will be called the Vladem Contemporary Art Museum to begin in early 2019 with a 2020 completion date.

By Garry Boulard

---