Water + Life Museums celebrate the link between Southern California’s water infrastructure and the evolution of life, stressing how that link is critical to developing the resource stewardship required of a sustainable society. Sustainable energy systems—-including a 3,000-PV array-—as well as materials and methods were employed. The building expects a LEED Platinum rating. The museums pose a striking profile of metal and glass at the eastern entrance to Diamond Valley Lake. Drawing from the bold imagery of turbines and generators, the modern design is in the tradition of the monumental, honorific architecture of the Metropolitan Water District, which administers the water infrastructure and gave the land for the project. Steel-clad monoliths blaze across each façade, contrasting with the desert skyline. Translucent banners printed with pixilated images hang across 10,000 square feet of east-facing glass. Latticed loggias give a dramatic processional feeling through filtered light.
construction aerial
landscape views
water + life museums
banners and plaza
loggia from the side
under the loggia
classrooms & gardens
rooftop solar array
entry to museum
exhibit corridor
site plan
energy diagram
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