Conflux is a cultural Museum dedicated to American folk art, located in Manhattan, New York. The project seeks to create an immersive and evolving spatial narrative that mirrors the eclectic and communal nature of folk art itself. The conceptual framework emerged from a careful alignment with the surrounding urban grid, allowing the building to integrate organically with the rhythms of its neighborhood. This alignment informed a site-specific grid that structures the massing and establishes a spatial hierarchy across the program. The design distinguishes between two primary volumes, public-facing and staff-serving, defining a central void between them. This in-between space becomes a conduit for circulation and curiosity, offering an open threshold that invites both visitors and passersby into the heart of the project. By embedding the public plaza into the lower levels of this central void, Conflux blurs the boundary between city and institution, encouraging engagement through transparency and flow.
The massing strategy supports a variety of programmatic conditions: one volume houses galleries, a library, and a visitor center, while the other contains back-of-house spaces and a dedicated lecture hall. The central void, rather than being residual, is activated as a vertical and horizontal experience. It accommodates an expressive stair that threads through every level, extending the galleries into moments of pause and connection across floors. This circulation system, along with the embedded plaza and extensions from the gallery spaces, provides a rich tapestry of movement that mirrors the layered storytelling of folk art. The spatial progression builds anticipation and frames each exhibit as a moment of discovery. By offering adaptable environments for a range of art forms, Conflux becomes a living metaphor, connecting diverse communities and traditions through shared space and collective experience.
