Tadao Ando’s Pulitzer Arts Foundation - St Louis

There is great architecture in St Louis beyond the Gateway Arch designed by Eero Saarinen and completed in 1965. Only 15 minutes west of the arch, the Pulitzer Arts Foundation at 3716 Washington Blvd is certainly worth a visit. Opened in 2001, it was designed by Japanese architect Tadao Ando with the local firm Christner Inc. and is Ando’s first building completed in the US. The small art museum was originally planned to display the collection of Joseph and Emily Pulitzer, and now accommodates changing exhibitions. The serene design provides a place to contemplate art and nature. Organized by two long concrete volumes with a reflecting pool between them, visitors are drawn through one space and into another. A floating concrete plane above the upper level shades the space and helps to identify the building from a distance. Known for his sensitivity and skill at detailing cast in place concrete, Tadao Ando has made the most of the site. The spaces are simple yet feel very unusual at the same time. Ando