AppointmentMarch 18, 2022
Frida Escobedo has been selected as the architect to renew one of the Met wings
Following a comprehensive international search, The Metropolitan Museum of Art announced that Mexico City-based architect Frida Escobedo had been selected to design the Museum's vision for the Oscar L. Tang and H.M. Agnes Hsu-Tang Wing. Escobedo will be the first woman appointed as the architect of a wing at The Met.
The project will encompass a full reimagining of the current modern and contemporary galleries, which The Met has been seeking to revamp for more than a decade, creating 80,000 square feet of galleries and public space. The cost of the renovation is estimated to be $500 million.
In making the announcement, Daniel H. Weiss, President and CEO of The Met said, "The most generous gift of the Tangs has enabled this next step forward. Frida Escobedo's impressive and inspiring portfolio of projects and her creative engagement with our team have given us great excitement about this important chapter for The Met."
Frida Escobedo stated, "The Met is one of the most relevant sites for culture on a global scale, and it is an honor to be selected for this historic architectural reimagining. The Tang Wing presents an opportunity to give new life to the Museum's art from the 20th and 21st century; to celebrate the dynamics we can find within art of different times, geographies, and ideologies; and to uncover new spaces for self-reflection and connection with others. I look forward to working with The Met's teams on this remarkable project."
Escobedo established her eponymous studio in Mexico City in 2006. The studio's reputation—initially built on the strength of a series of competition-winning projects in her native country, including the renovation of the Hotel Boca Chica (2008), the El Eco Pavilion (2010), and the expansion of La Tallera Siqueiros in Cuernavaca (2012). The studio had achieved global scope since 2018, when she received the prestigious appointment to design the annual Serpentine Pavilion in London's Kensington Gardens, becoming the youngest architect to undertake the project.
The project will encompass a full reimagining of the current modern and contemporary galleries, which The Met has been seeking to revamp for more than a decade, creating 80,000 square feet of galleries and public space. The cost of the renovation is estimated to be $500 million.
In making the announcement, Daniel H. Weiss, President and CEO of The Met said, "The most generous gift of the Tangs has enabled this next step forward. Frida Escobedo's impressive and inspiring portfolio of projects and her creative engagement with our team have given us great excitement about this important chapter for The Met."
Frida Escobedo stated, "The Met is one of the most relevant sites for culture on a global scale, and it is an honor to be selected for this historic architectural reimagining. The Tang Wing presents an opportunity to give new life to the Museum's art from the 20th and 21st century; to celebrate the dynamics we can find within art of different times, geographies, and ideologies; and to uncover new spaces for self-reflection and connection with others. I look forward to working with The Met's teams on this remarkable project."
Escobedo established her eponymous studio in Mexico City in 2006. The studio's reputation—initially built on the strength of a series of competition-winning projects in her native country, including the renovation of the Hotel Boca Chica (2008), the El Eco Pavilion (2010), and the expansion of La Tallera Siqueiros in Cuernavaca (2012). The studio had achieved global scope since 2018, when she received the prestigious appointment to design the annual Serpentine Pavilion in London's Kensington Gardens, becoming the youngest architect to undertake the project.
