Agnes Mongan Center, Harvard Art Museums

The Agnes Mongan Center is home to the Harvard Art Museums’ collections and curators of prints, drawings, and photographs. It was created by expanding and renovating the Naumburg Wing of the Fogg Art Museum. Prior to 1994, works on paper were stored and curated in disparate corners of the museum, without climate control or room for expansion. The cramped, separated quarters made it difficult for curators, students, and scholars to undertake research, teach, or prepare exhibitions. The new design integrates collections, curatorial offices, dedicated study and seminar rooms, and gallery into a cohesive whole. 

Since its completion, the Mongan Center has become a model for other study centers at Harvard and beyond. Works on paper are now stored in state-of-the-art climate-controlled facilities with capacity for over 60,000 new works, while a specially designed cold archive vault provides a suitable environment for color photographs.

Client: Harvard Art Museums (James Cuno, Marjorie Cohn, Miriam Stewart, Bill Robinson)
Design Team: Johannes Kastner-Lanjus, Severud, Exergen, Thompson Engineering
Builder: Jurek
Photographer: Paul Warchol