Archinect

Baird Architects has completed a major expansion of the Woodmere Art Museum in Philadelphia. The most significant transformation of the institution since its founding in 1910, the project more than doubles the museum’s exhibition space and introduces new facilities for education, events, and outdoor programming.

Central to the expansion is the adaptation of a 19th-century Gothic Revival mansion into the 17,000-square-foot Frances M. Maguire Hall for Art and Education. The renovated building adds 14 galleries accommodating more than 500 works of art, along with a dedicated children’s art studio, flexible spaces for small gatherings, and four acres of preserved landscape. 

Krieger Architects served as associate architect for the scheme.

Originally constructed in 1852 as a country retreat, the mansion has undergone multiple changes over its lifetime, including Italianate additions and decades of use by the Sisters of St. Joseph. Following Woodmere’s acquisition of the property in 2021, renovation work began in spring 2023.

The design retains historic features while introducing contemporary gallery environments with increased daylight and accessibility. New visitor amenities include a cantilevered precast-concrete terrace overlooking the Wissahickon Valley and a glass elevator that brings natural light into the building’s interior. 

The surrounding landscape was redesigned by Andropogon Associates to strengthen connections between the museum and its natural setting. The expansion also enables growth of Woodmere’s sculpture garden, incorporating native plantings, pollinator habitats, and mature trees, extending the museum’s exhibition program into the surrounding landscape.

Several interior spaces highlight the building’s layered history, including restored wood-paneled rooms and a former basement vault repurposed as a gallery for contemporary jewelry and decorative arts. A dedicated room houses “The Building of the House of Wisdom,” an 18-panel mural cycle by Violet Oakley, originally created for a residence designed by Frank Miles Day.

“Witnessing the loss of many historic structures in Chestnut Hill in my youth, it was particularly meaningful to transform Maguire Hall into a contemporary exhibition space filled with natural light,” said Matthew Baird, principal and founder of Baird Architects. “With this expansion, we’ve reimagined this historic stone mansion as a world-class venue for viewing art.”