David Adjaye . Linda Pace Foundation . + archdaily
Ruby City, the Linda Pace Foundation’s new building to be open to the public in 2018 in San Antonio, Texas, is the vision and mandate of the Foundation’s Founder, Linda Pace (1945- 2007), who was driven by the belief that art is a vital social force. David Adjaye has designed a building to exhibit the Foundation’s growing collection of over 800 paintings, sculptures, installations, and video works by international contemporary artists. The building will serve as a destination for visitors to contemplate and experience adventurous artwork from the recent past. Admission will be free.
The design presents a two-story structure with an exterior clad in crimson-hued panels of precast concrete with glass aggregate. The planes are punctuated by strategically placed, oversized windows directed toward park and city views. Largely rectangular, the building features a dramatic rooftop of sloping angles and skylights that rise to varying heights and echo cut-away spaces at the building’s base. Inside the lobby of the building, a grand staircase leads up to a series of three gallery spaces with concrete floors and white walls and ceilings. Totaling 14,000 square feet, it will include 10,000 square feet of exhibition space, with the remaining spaces devoted to administrative offices, and MEP.
The new building will be called Ruby City, based on a dream that Linda Pace had, which she sketched and shared with Adjaye during a visit he made to San Antonio in 2007. Ruby City will be situated on Camp Street, and will be part of the Linda Pace Foundation campus extending from South Flores Street to the San Pedro Creek.
