A ROM Without a View

Now, let me begin by saying that I like modern architecture as much as the next guy (which isn't much unless the next guy is a modern architect - sorry Dad!).

During the holidays we took our first trip down to the re-opened Royal Ontario Museum. They closed it for a while to attach the fortress of solitude to the classic old museum building. Well, it's a modified fortress of solitude at least. It's like that but without all the shiny parts.



As I understand it. This structure was meant to be all glass, then they either ran out of money or realized that it snows in Toronto, and they changed the design so that it is mostly what appears to be cheap aluminum siding with the occasional long thin window.

Kind of makes it a little less crystal-like. Plus, if they had more windows you could see the displays from the street and maybe want to visit. Instead you might want to rush past this museum that is posing as a futuristic jail or mental institution.


So, the outside looks terrible (see webcam image from above, above).

Perhaps the inside looks better. Perhaps not. It's very dark inside. Maybe they saved on lights because they thought it would be all glass and they wouldn't need many. The impression we had (that has been echoed by others who have visited) is that it seems as though they ran out of money before they got a chance to finish the walls. A little paint over that drywall would have gone a long way. In their defense, I think they put a single coat of primer.

There was one part of the renovation that I did like. It was the interior wall that used to be the exterior wall of the original building. I took a picture of it, but it was too dark. Dang!

Here are some pictures from the original building. The image on the right is the ceiling of the grand entrance (rotunda?).


And here's the front. Classic architecture, grand entrance. Did I mention the grand entrance?



I have another beef. They didn't seem to put any bathrooms in the extension. James and I had to travel deep into the old building to find the bathroom that we were told was "behind the crocodile".

Watching TV recently I saw the dinosaur display at the Natural History Museum in London, England. Ancient bones set against classic architecture. Maybe it's too much to aspire to (see image below), but at least they could have aspired at least a little.

Natural History Museum (sadly not the ROM)

And for this, they removed the dinosaur bones from the ROM for a couple of years, and spent eleventy trillion dollars. I'm speechless!

Blogged with Flock