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RyanCarmichael ArtHistory06512May2009 ProfessorO’Rourke
CharlesShipmanPaysonBuilding
TheCharlesShipmanPaysonBuildingisthemostrecentexpansionofthePortlandMuseumofArt
(PMA)inPortland,Maine,locatedonthecornerofHighStreetandCongressSquare1.HenryN.Cobb(of
Pei,Cobb,Freed&Partners)designedthePaysonBuilding,whichintroducedoverfivetimesmore
galleryspacethanintheadjacent,historicPMAbuildings(McLellan‐SweatHouse,CharlesQuincyClapp
House,andL.D.M.SweatMemorial)2.Thebuildingopenedin1983,afterMr.Paysondonated17
WinslowHomerpaintingsandtenmilliondollarstothemuseum3.SimilarinthemetotheseHomer
paintings3,thePaysonbuildingcontainsacollectionofcontemporarypaintingsandshort‐term
exhibitionscreatedbyMaineartists,focusingonregionalthemes4.
ExteriorDesignDetails__________________________________________________________________
Cobb’slargestchallengewastocreateabuildingthatprovidedanenjoyableandpowerfullocationto
viewart,whilerelatingtothediverseconditionsofitsawkwardlyshapedurbansite.Thetallbrick
buildingsenclosingtheothersidesofCongressSquarerequiredthePaysonbuildingtocontainaunified,
strong,large‐scalepresence.Converselythesmaller,historicPMAbuildingsontheSpringStreetsideof
thebuildsiterequiredthePaysonBuildingtohaveasmaller‐buildingformthatwouldaccommodate
thesehistoricneighbors2.Cobb’ssolutionwastodesignawidefaçademadeofredbrickandgray
granitelintelswithsemicircleopenings4(Figure1).Thisforcefulfaçadehasthestreetpresenceofa
Renaissancepalazzo,enclosingthepublicsquare2.BehindthefaçadeCobbgraduallyreducedboththe
heightandlengthofthebuilding(Figure2)untilthebuildingterminatedinthebackleftcorner,one
fourthaswideandtallasthemainfaçade.Bysteppingthebuildingbackanddowninthisway,Cobb
wassuccessfullyabletograntprimacytotheneighboringhistoricbuildings3.
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CobbchosetocomprisethestructureofthePaysonBuildingofaconcreteframewithconcrete
blockinfill,renderingthefaçadeessentiallya“curtainwall1.”Thisledtocriticismfromotherarchitects
thatCobbgavethebuildingafalse,billboard‐like,front5.Cobbclaims,however,thatthefaçade
symbolicallyrepresentstheinterior.Thecircularinsetsandcutoutsaremetaphorsthatrecallthesquare
interiorgalleriesandtherectangularbrickinsetssignifytherectangularinteriorcirculationspaces6.
InteriorDesignDetails__________________________________________________________________
Behindthecontroversialfaçadeliemanygallerieswithcleanwhitewallsandpinefloorswithgranite
strippingsetintothefloor5.Thisgranitemarksofftwenty‐footbytwenty‐footspaces,thoughtbyCobb
tobethesmallestdesirablegalleryspace.Aroundthesesquarespaces,granitestripsalsodelineate
rectangularcirculationspacesaroundeachsquare.Overcertaingranitestrips,Cobbplacedwallswith
widecutoutdoorstoshapevarioussizedgalleryspaces2.
ToreflectandaccommodatethediversityoftheHomerpaintings,Cobbnotonlystrategically
placedwallstocreatedifferentsizedgalleryspaces,butalsovariedtheceilingheightfrom12.5to25to
37.5feethigh.Thesediversegalleryspaceswereintentionallydesignedtoprovidenoclearpath
throughthemuseum.Cobbclaimedthatthislayoutreflectedthelackoforderinggrandboulevardsand
gridsinthemodestcitesofNewEngland1.Further,Cobb’slayoutofthegalleriesallowsavisitor
standinginonegallerytoseeglimpsesofseveralothergalleries,oftenonmultiplelevels,throughthe
widegallerydoors.Thisgivesthevisitorasenseofadventureandanticipationasheorshetravels
throughthegalleries5.
Perhapsthemostcompellingfeatureofthegalleriesisthelighting,rivalingthatofKahn’s
KimballGallery5.Thegalleriesarelitwithcascadingdomedceilings,whicharefilledwithdaylightfrom
superimposedoctagonalclerestorylanterns(Figure3)basedontheDulwichCollegeArtGallerybyJohn
Soane2.Clerestoriespermitmaximumsunlighttoenterthegallerywhileavoidingdirectrayshittingthe
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gallerywalls.Thisnaturallightisaccompaniedbyincandescenttracklighting6,althoughthisartificial
lightingisoftenleftoffduringtheday5.Theshiftinglightenteringthemuseumanimates,diffuses,and
shapesthegalleriesbelow,celebratingthemuseumscollectionswith“PortlandLight3.”
HistoricalInspirations___________________________________________________________________
IndesigningthePaysonBuilding,manysignificantworksofmodernarchitectureinfluencedCobb.The
façadesofKahn’sIndianInstituteofManagementinAhmedabad,India(semicircleopenings,large
sectionsofplainbrick)andKahn’sPhillipsExeterLibraryinNewHampshire(arcade)partiallyinspired
thefaçadeofthePaysonbuilding.ThefamouslightingfromtheDulwichPictureGallery,theKimballArt
MuseuminFortWorth,andthelanternsofElyCathedralinspiredlightingforthePaysonBuilding.
FurtherinfluencesincludeaporticobyLedoux,theDoge’sPalaceinVenice,andotherprecedents6.
Regionalism___________________________________________________________________________
Beyondthesemorefamousinfluences,CobbalsohadastrongdesiretolinkthePaysonbuildingto
Maine.Heremarked,“ThePortlandMuseumisaregionalmuseuminaregionthatisitselfamuseum,
soIbelieveIhadanobligationtoconnectthenewbuildingtothecityandtheregion6.”Toexpressthe
museum’sconnectiontoMaine,CobbusedlocallymadematerialscommontoMaine(water‐struck
brick,pine,andgranite)ashischiefdesignmaterials6.Thesematerialscalltothevernaculararchitecture
ofPortland3,definedbythebrickcommercialbuildingsandwarehousesoftheOldPortandtheFederal
stylebrickbuildingsnearthemuseum4.Furthermore,fromthegroundlookingupatthePayson
building,oneisstruckwithhowthefaçade’ssemicircularopeningsencasetheairandlightofMaine,
makingitpartofthebuilding2.Asimilareffectisachievedwiththebuilding’smanyoctagonal
clerestories3.Theseclerestoriesalsorecalltheviewingdecksoftheregion’slighthousesaswellasthe
octagonalPortlandObservatory,amajorcityicon.Additionally,porthole‐likewindowsrevealviewsof
theForeRiverrecallingMaine’srichnauticalhistory4.
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Figure1:Bird’seyeviewofthemainfaçadeoftheCharlesShipmanPaysonBuildingImagecourtesyofPeiCobbFreed&Partners
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Figure2:RearelevationoftheCharlesShipmanPaysonBuildingsteppingdownandbackImagecourtesyofPeiCobbFreed&Partners
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Figure3:MainhalloftheCharlesShipmanPaysonBuildingwithnotedskylightImagecourtesyofPeiCobbFreed&Partners
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WorksCited
1‐Brenson,Michael."NewPortlandMuseumPursuesaHumanScale."TheNewYorkTimes9Aug.
1983,LateCityFinalEdition,sec.C:13.ThissourceisanewsarticlefromtheNewYorkTimes
publishedaroundthetimethemuseumopened.Iusedthissourceforbasicinformationandfor
someinformationaboutthebuilding’slayoutfortheregionalismsection.Ihavenoreasonto
doubtthissourceastheNYTisatrustworthynewspaper.
2‐Cobb,HenryNichols.WhereIstand:Lecture.Cambridge:GraduateSchoolOfDesign,Harvard
University],1981.ThisisatranscriptionofatalkCobbgaveattheHarvardGraduateDesign
schooljustbeforethePaysonbuildingwastobeconstructed.Intheendofhisspeech,hespent
severalminutestalkingexclusivelyaboutthePaysonBuilding,whichprovedtobeaninvaluable
resourceformethroughoutthepaperasIcouldrefertothearchitectsintentnotan
interpretationofhisintent.Ihavenoreasontodoubtthissourceasitisfromthearchitect
himself.
3‐Thorn,Megan.CharlesShipmanPaysonBuilding.Portland:ThePortlandMuseumOfArt,1983.This
sourceisabookcelebratingtheopeningofthePaysonBuilding.Itismostlyfocusedontheart
tobecontainedwithinthebuilding,buttheintroductionprovidedmewithgoodbasic
informationonthePaysonbuilding.Ihavenoreasontodistrustthissourceasitispublishedby
thePMA.
4‐Conforti,JosephA.CreatingPortland:HistoryandPlaceinNorthernNewEngland(RevisitingNew
Eng.Hanover:UniversityPressofNewEngland,2005.Thissourceisabookreviewingthe
creationofPortland.Iusedthesectionontheart’stogainusefultidbitsformyregionalism
sectionaswellassomebasicinfo.Ihavenoreasontodistrustthissourceasitispublishedbya
trustedpublisher.
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5–Campbell,Robert.“ModulesStackedBehinda‘Billboard’.”AmericanArchitectureofthe1980s.
Washington,D.C.:TheAmericanInstituteofArchitectsPress,1990.Thissourceisacritical
articlewrittenaboutthePaysonbuilding.Itwasveryusefulfordescribingthelayoutofthe
buildingaswellasexposingmetonegativecommentaryaboutthebuilding.Itrustthissource
becauseatrustedpublisherofarchitectureliteraturepublishesit.
6‐Schmertz,MildredF."Formandfigure;ThePortlandMuseumofArt,CharlesShipmanPayson
Building,Portland,Maine."ArchitecturalRecord171.13(1983):108‐199.Thissourceisthe
ArchitecturalRecordofthePaysonbuilding.Itwasveryhelpfulthroughoutthepaperasit
providedrichdescriptionsofthebuildingandfactssuchasCobb’shistoricalinfluencesthatwere
notfoundelsewhere.Additionally,thesourcealsocontainedmanyquotesfromthearchitect,
whichwereinvaluable.Itrustthissourcebecauseitistheofficialarchitecturalrecord.