Share this on

Wing Luke Asian Museum to Open in Seattle

The museum is housed in a restored 1910 social center for Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino immigrants.

Nicholas Tamarin -- Interior Design, 5/28/2008 12:00:00 AM

Having already given Seattle the Fry Art Museum, hometown firm Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects delivers another cultural institution to The Emerald City on the May 31 with the debut of the firm’s Wing Luke Asian Museum.

Located in the Chinatown International District, the Smithsonian Institution affiliate museum was designed by firm principal Rick Sundberg in the restored East Kong Yick Building, a 1910 social center for Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino immigrants.

Much of the original building was retained, including narrow doorways and corridors, and small rooms preserved on upper floors that will now house the museum's immersion exhibits. Windows and doors were repaired and reinstalled, and fir joists were recycled as stair treads. The structure’s two-story light wells promote natural airflow, while transparency between adjacent spaces and floors allows daylight to filter down to the main entry.

Aiming to connect with its community, the museum will provide spaces for meetings, events, performances and presentations, as well as exhibit areas for local artists and emerging Asian Pacific American artists. Also on tap are family-centered learning environments, and leadership development programs for neighborhood youths.

"I think the complexity of the program is what ultimately gives the building its identity and character," says Sundberg. "The architecture retreats, and the experience of the visitor is of primary importance.

A rendering of the new Wing Luke Asian Museum in Seattle.

Rendering courtesy of Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects