Mattatuck Museum

Waterbury, Connecticut, USA
43,000 square feet / 4,000 square meters
1986

The Mattatuck Museum is one of the state’s oldest museums, focusing on regional history and the art of Connecticut. Its collections range from furniture and industrial artifacts to paintings and works on paper. This project included the adaptive reuse of the four-​story, steel-​frame, brick-​and-​limestone-​clad Masonic Temple and the design of a new addition to create spacious exhibition galleries, a 300-​seat performance and conference space, research library, café, classrooms and museum store.

Urban scale and public image were important considerations in the design. The Museum is located on a prominent corner, facing the Waterbury Green. The entrance was positioned to receive the corner and align with older adjacent buildings. This placement also allows for a sculpture court behind the new addition. The materials of the addition match the brick and limestone of the original building while a copper crown indicates the Museum’s public function.

The Museum offers extensive outreach and education programs, and encourages the community to use its facilities and archives. The ground-​floor orientation space hosts meetings and seminars. The third-​floor lecture hall accommodates performances and events.