Texas Center's New Home Underway

Construction on Asia Society Texas Center's new building, which began in January, is well underway in the heart of Houston's Museum District. The 38,000 square ft. building's is slated to open to the public in March 2012. Yoshio Taniguchi, the building's architect, is in Houston this week and has been meeting with donors and the press to discuss the impressive project.

To date, construction is more than halfway complete at 1370 Southmore, the center's new address. All exterior walls are up and the "topping out" ceremony on the $48.4 million project was held a few weeks back as well. (The topping out is a tradition on all construction sites, held once the highest point of the building has been reached, in which the crew places a ceremonial tree at the top of the building to mark this important stage of the construction process.)

Taniguchi, known for his renovation and expansion of the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, has overseen the building's every last detail, down to which layer of rock should provide the Jura limestone that covers the building's exterior.

Asia Society Texas Center is currently embarking on building capacity funds necessary to sustain its expansion. Come Fall 2011, Houston's center will be Asia Society's only US center apart from New York to operate from its very own building.

Related links:
Asia Society Texas Center Breaks Ground
CultureMap Houston on Asia Society Texas Center's new home