Ibañez Shaw's Fort Worth Camera Studios land in Texas
Fort Worth is blessed with a wide range of cultural institutions by an enviable array of international architecture heavyweights. With Louis Khan's Kimbell Art Museum (including Renzo Piano's recent extension) and a modern art museum by Tadao Ando, the Texan city easily earns its spot within the world architecture map. The latest contemporary addition is a new photography hub on Montgomery Street, courtesy of local firm Ibañez Shaw Architecture. It sits just a stone's throw from the museum district and across the street from The Museum of Science and History by Legoretta +Legoretta.
Split into two wings that are set on different levels, the structure is a concrete complex comprising photography classrooms, studios, and a retail area. The strong geometry and clean lines are reflected in all areas of the building – with a distinctive pattern of round perforations adorning parts of the facade, and referencing, explain the architects, the ‘graphic proportionality of seven standard apertures that restrict how much light is allowed to enter the camera'. Extra care was taken when these were designed, so that openings are conically flared to ‘increase the visual transparency and graphic presentation', continues the team.
The structure's strong character continues inside, with the retail area featuring glass shelving, so as not to detract from the overall concrete feel. A spectrum of cameras is spread across the shelves, becoming a key ornamental focus for the room.
Still, the complex maintains a healthy level of playfulness. A yellow box unexpectedly protrudes from the concrete volume, containing the hub's children's area; while a umbrella-shaped photo-studio light illuminates the conference room near the upper level entry. Reflectors are used above the cashiers in the retail space, bouncing daylight and illuminating the interior in a true photographic fashion.
INFORMATION
For more information visit the Ibañez Shaw Architecture website
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
Remembering Richard Serra (1938-2024), American art’s man of steel
American artist Richard Serra, whose vast sculptures transformed landscapes around the world, has died aged 85
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Architectural gardens around the world to soothe the soul
From small domestic gardens, to nature reserves, urban interventions and local parks, here are some of the finest green projects that place nature at their heart
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Corfu hotel Domes Miramare redefines beachfront bliss
Make like Jackie O at Corfu hotel Domes Miramare, a property with contemporary luxury and echoes of 1960s glamour in spades
By Bridget Downing Published
-
Boise Passive House’s bold gestures support an environmentally friendly design
Boise Passive House by Haas Architecture combines sleek, contemporary design and environmental efficiency
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
At the Hilbert Museum of California Art’s expanded home, art and architecture converge
The Hilbert Museum of California Art expands its home, courtesy of Los Angeles architecture studio Johnston Marklee
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Pearlman Cabin by John Lautner is an organic Californian mountain retreat
John Lautner’s midcentury Pearlman Cabin, tucked away in the Californian mountain resort of Idyllwild, is a striking example of organic architecture
By Mimi Zeiger Published
-
Albert Frey’s Aluminaire House is reborn in Palm Springs
Aluminaire House, designed by legendary modernist Albert Frey, has been reconstructed outside the Palm Springs Art Museum
By Michael Webb Published
-
Giovanni Michelucci’s dramatic concrete church in the Italian Dolomites
Giovanni Michelucci’s concrete Church of Santa Maria Immacolata in the Italian Dolomites is a reverently uplifting memorial to the victims of a local disaster
By Jonathan Glancey Published
-
Christian de Portzamparc’s Dior Geneva flagship store dazzles and flows
Dior’s Geneva flagship by French architect Christian de Portzamparc has a brand new, wavy façade that references the fashion designer's original processes using curves, cuts and light
By Herbert Wright Published
-
Beverly Hills’ Carla Ridge is a modern home taking in expansive city views
Carla Ridge in Beverly Hills blends modernist architecture nods, with contemporary lines and varying textures which complement its views of the hillside, valley, and city
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Downtown LA’s Beaudry is a cityscape statement of modern luxury
Beaudry is a new Los Angeles residential skyscraper by Marmol Radziner that offers contemporary living, a sense of place, and earthy design
By Carole Dixon Published