Peterson Rich Office Unveils Condé Nast Galleries at The Met

This article reviews Peterson Rich Office’s (PRO) recently completed redesign of five contiguous spaces for the Condé Nast Galleries within the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

Spanning 12,000 square feet, the project reveals historic facades to celebrate the Met’s layered history while inserting contemporary gallery programs.

PRO’s approach interweaves old and new.

This creates transitional zones that act as a dialogue between the building’s historic fabric and modern exhibition needs.

Project scope and design strategy

PRO transformed a historic courtyard between Richard Morris Hunt’s Great Hall and 19th‑century structures by Arthur Lyman Tuckerman and Calvert Vaux.

They inserted new gallery and support spaces as five contiguous rooms.

The team worked within the constraints of a historic shell.

They exposed original materials to reframe the visitor’s journey through the museum’s evolving identity.

The design emphasizes layering.

It preserves the experience of walking through the Met’s built history while providing adaptable spaces for contemporary display.

In this project, PRO positions the architectural upper layers as active parts of the gallery experience.

Historic facades are exposed where possible to reveal former exteriors now serving as interior walls.

This creates a clear, temporal sequence as visitors move from one volume to the next.

Historic fabric meets contemporary insertions

The Orientation Gallery anchors the sequence with 19-foot-tall limestone openings and bold grey marmorino plaster walls.

Glazed casework frames sightlines into other museum spaces.

Two large oak swinging doors open into the High Gallery.

This contemporary space features 21-foot ceilings, concealed beam structures, and a ceiling designed for indirect, soft lighting.

The High Gallery is a rotating exhibition space.

Its lighting strategy hides technical elements while providing flexible illumination.

Midway, the High Gallery compresses into the Low Gallery.

This space uses a similar material palette but offers a more intimate program and standard museum track lighting.

Spatial sequencing and gallery programs

The Finale Gallery makes PRO’s approach clear.

One wall is finished in a contemporary style, while the opposite wall reveals 19th‑century brickwork and pilasters.

An adjacent compact shop supports rotating shows.

This reinforces the rhythm of temporary programming within a historic setting.

The arrangement—Orientation, High, Midway/Low, Finale—guides visitors through a layered experience of past and present.

Lighting, materials, and technical approach

Key materials define the project: limestone openings, marmorino plaster walls, brickwork, and glass cases.

The lighting system is indirect and concealed to reduce visual clutter and adapt to different show scales.

The High Gallery’s ceiling and hidden structures allow a flexible lighting strategy.

This supports a rotating program without visible infrastructure, which is important for a high-profile, evolving institution.

Outcomes and broader context

The Met continues to expand. This project sits alongside forthcoming additions, including a new volume by Frida Escobedo.

PRO’s work at the Condé Nast Galleries demonstrates a disciplined approach to historic preservation and adaptive reuse. Their museum interior design respects legacy fabric while delivering contemporary exhibition capabilities.

The result is a sensitive, efficient environment. It preserves the Met’s experiential essence amid ongoing expansion and evolving curatorial needs.

• Historic facades revealed to emphasize the city’s layered museum history
• Liminal transitional zones between old and new for a curated experiential flow
• Rotating exhibition infrastructure in the High Gallery with concealed tech
• Material honesty through limestone, plaster, and brick within a refined palette
• Strategic lighting that supports flexibility and invisibility of systems

 
Here is the source article for this story: Peterson Rich Office designs Condé M Nast Galleries at The Met in time for yearly gala exhibition