rodin museum

OLIN rejuvenated the garden landscape surrounding the Rodin Museum, home of the largest collection of the Rodin’s works in the world. The landscape enhances the original 1928 plans for the garden by architects Paul Phillipe Cret and Jacques Gréber, restoring components of the original design while creating contemporary spaces for museum visitors and social events. The design restores the symmetry of the formal French plan and reunifies the entire city block as a public garden befitting the cultural corridor of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway—often referred to as “Museum Mile.” The revitalization of the Rodin Museum was an essential component of a framework plan for the Benjamin Franklin Parkway completed by OLIN in 2003, which envisions the cultural corridor as a source of social and cultural vitality.

OLIN’s design solution includes the preservation of original walls and structures within the garden as well as the incorporation of new architectural elements and durable paving. The installation of new paths and ramps at specific, discrete locations allow visitors full access to the gardens and grounds. The new planting plan features many plantings specified in the historical 1928 plans while introducing new native species. The plan for the grounds outside the formal gardens provides sweeping pathways and lawns among groves of London Planes, while a free-standing stone entrance gate—a replica of the entry at Rodin's 18th-century country estate—is a grand introduction to the museum from the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.

Location
Philadelphia, PA

Owner
Philadelphia Museum of Art

Status
Completed 2011

Key Team Members
Susan Weiler, Partner-in-Charge
Eve Kootchick, Project Manager

Awards
2013, Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia, Preservation Achievement Grand Jury Award