Toronto Royal Ontario Museum | ?m | ?s | Daniel Libeskind

I say they put a noise restriction in the entire museum. Anything above a whisper and you're kicked out. Same goes for moving faster than a gentle stroll.

And now that I think of it, too many patrons wear too colourful clothing. It's distracting. Everyone has to wear grey. Also nobody below the age of 31.

Keep the riff raff out. Only a certain type of people should be able to learn things.
 
Proposed work at the Queen's Park entrance - from the Sept. TPB:

Item: http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgendaItemHistory.do?item=2016.PB17.1

Plan
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Elevation
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AoD
 

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This was the original building.

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The Royal Ontario Museum in 1922. This side of the building, facing the west and "Philosopher's Walk" was the original facade of the building that opened to the public in 1914. The Avenue Road side, on the east, didn't open until 1933.

See link for more information.
 
I remember as a kid visiting the huge room that had housed the Chinese mausoleum and its accompanying pieces of camels and other objects. I believe the ROM had replicated their original relative placement. We had visited during the afternoon so the room was sun-filled which made it feel like we were outdoors. The room was located in the space occupied by the current outdoor plaza. It was an impressive display and reminded me of The Met's Temple of Dandur room. I was surprised that the ROM dismantled that impressive space, and actually strewn the individual pieces of the mausoleum throughout its East Asia space; the effect is not as dramatic nor impressive :( In fact, it almost felt like a dismemberment. Hopefully, one day, they will recreate that space, not to mention reopen that planetarium. I really should share my thoughts with them since I'm a distant member of that institution. I love the ROM's biodiversity galleries and paleontology displays; top of the world(!)
 
In this particular case I don't have a problem with the Libeskind addition in the general sense, but more the specifics as in the exterior cladding and interior finishes. Nothing money wouldn't solve.

AoD

I think the Crystal addition is very respectful of the original wings and even enhances them. The Hyacinth Gloria Chen Crystal Court is fantastic at showcasing the architecture that was hidden away by decades of mishmash additions.

The skin of the Crystal was a failure that then ROM CEO Will Thorsell was unable to admit to. Some time in the future, I look forward to the mismatched cladding being replaced with something less grey and of better build quality. A translucent frosted white glass would look fantastic. They could replace the slats with ones made of glass and install LEDs underneath to produce a glowing Crystal at night.

I hope that they stick to the original plan for the south Crystal when the time comes for another expansion. Another Crystal courtyard on the other side would reveal more covered up architecture from the original wings and would be a fantastic space for large artifacts. Maybe a new dinosaur gallery right front and centre on the ground floor. Perhaps aboriginal art. I've seen some massive totem poles that would require a tall space. We could also celebrate Canada's contribution to aviation and to space exploration. Did the retired Canadarms come back to Earth?

libeskind-aerial.jpg
 
I think the Crystal addition is very respectful of the original wings and even enhances them. The Hyacinth Gloria Chen Crystal Court is fantastic at showcasing the architecture that was hidden away by decades of mishmash additions.

The skin of the Crystal was a failure that then ROM CEO Will Thorsell was unable to admit to. Some time in the future, I look forward to the mismatched cladding being replaced with something less grey and of better build quality. A translucent frosted white glass would look fantastic. They could replace the slats with ones made of glass and install LEDs underneath to produce a glowing Crystal at night.

I hope that they stick to the original plan for the south Crystal when the time comes for another expansion. Another Crystal courtyard on the other side would reveal more covered up architecture from the original wings and would be a fantastic space for large artifacts. Maybe a new dinosaur gallery right front and centre on the ground floor. Perhaps aboriginal art. I've seen some massive totem poles that would require a tall space. We could also celebrate Canada's contribution to aviation and to space exploration. Did the retired Canadarms come back to Earth?

libeskind-aerial.jpg
The ROM also purchased a blue whale skeleton as well and would want to display it. It could be displayed in a pose similar to that of the blue whale in the American Museum of Natural History (though AMNH's blue whale is a replica and not the real thing, unlike the ROM's).

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Blue whale in AMNH
 

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