Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum by Zaha Hadid, Michigan

Nearing its completion, Zaha Hadid's Broad Art Museum in the midwestern college town of Michigan is set to open this Autumn

(Image credit: Zaha Hadid)

Fresh from the success of her Olympics Aquatics Centre, Zaha Hadid has a dozen new projects to help build the momentum. But none is as imminent as the Broad Art Museum, a contemporary gallery on the Michigan State University campus, scheduled to open its doors this autumn.

The structure is Hadid-esque in its asymmetrical dynamism, a magnificent foil for the gothic brick campus it aims to nudge into the future. The elongated design edged out competition from established firms such as Coop Himmelb(l)au, Morphosis and even Kohn Pedersen Fox, providing a huge coup for the architect once known as a master of the unbuilt.

The launch of the new 4,000 sq m Broad, named for the benefactors Eli and Edythe Broad, marks the expansion of an institutional collection heavy with antiquities and Old Masters to one rich with modern and postmodern work - thanks to a growing list of acquisitions from Jenny Holzer, Chuck Close, Ann Hamilton and Jeff Koons. Future exhibitions will emphasise young, experimental artists in a range of media.

Hadid's design complements this movement with aplomb, appearing to lunge toward the central campus at a peak height of 12 metres. Her multifaceted façade, composed of glass and stainless-steel 'pleats' (at every angle save for 90 degrees) reflects movement from all directions, stirring curiosity and drawing people in, yet changing in appearance with every step.

Outside, various walking paths that thread in and out of campus and circle the adjacent sculpture garden form an 'urban carpet', a pedestrian plaza, meeting place or simply a point of interest for academics and the wider city.

Of course, any Hadid project becomes a point of interest, and in this midwestern college town of 50,000 it is entirely apropos. The Hadid name, like the museum itself, is a harbinger for the questioning and understanding of new, modern ideas.

Tree and road — Hadid's elongated design for the contemporary gallery, situated on the Michigan State University campus, edged out competition from established firms such as Coop Himmelb(l)au, Morphosis and even Kohn Pedersen Fox

The structure's asymmetrical dynamism is a magnificent foil for the gothic brick campus it aims to nudge into the future

Man walking on lawn — The launch of the new 4,000 sq m Broad, named for the benefactors Eli and Edythe Broad, marks the expansion of an institutional collection heavy with antiquities and Old Masters to one rich with modern and postmodern work

Exhibitions — ... thanks to a growing list of acquisitions from Jenny Holzer, Chuck Close, Ann Hamilton and Jeff Koons. Future exhibitions will emphasise young, experimental artists in a
range of media

Outside, various walking paths that thread in and out of campus and circle the adjacent sculpture garden form an 'urban carpet', a pedestrian plaza, meeting place or simply a point of interest for academics and the wider city

Central campus at a peak height of 12 metres. — Hadid's design complements this movement with aplomb, appearing to lunge toward the central campus at a peak height of 12 metres.

The multifaceted façade, composed of glass and stainless-steel 'pleats' (at every angle save for 90 degrees) reflects movement from all directions

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Based in London, Ellen Himelfarb travels widely for her reports on architecture and design. Her words appear in The Times, The Telegraph, The World of Interiors, and The Globe and Mail in her native Canada. She has worked with Wallpaper* since 2006.