Speeches, ribbon cuttings, native blessings and more celebrate the opening of the Lightcatcher Building, the world class new addition to the Whatcom Museum campus.
The Lightcatcher is the result of an inspiring commitment of time and funding from many individuals, businesses and organizations including the City of Bellingham, the Bellingham/Whatcom Public Facilities District, the Whatcom Museum Foundation, the Campaign For the Arts and the Whatcom Community Foundation.
For the Whatcom Museum, the Lightcatcher represents a pivotal moment in its 68-year history. "As our first facility designed and built for use as a museum, the Lightcatcher enables the Whatcom Museum to bring world-class art to Bellingham, while expanding our ability to serve our growing community," said Executive Director Patricia Leach. "We couldn't be more excited, or more grateful to the people of Bellingham and Whatcom County for their enthusiastic and generous support."
Defined by an iconic, 180-foot-long glass wall, the facility was designed by architecture firm Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen's founding partner Jim Olson. In addition to state-of-the-art, humidity- and temperature-controlled galleries for traveling and local exhibitions, the Lightcatcher is home to the innovative and highly anticipated Family Interactive Gallery (FIG), formerly known as the Children's Museum.
The Lightcatcher itself is a work of art, with a design that reflects the museum's commitment to a fresh and vital future: the building is modern, earth-friendly and connected to the street. With its sweeping, light-diffusing glass wall, the Lightcatcher is a quiet symbol of enlightenment, true to the modest, nature-powered values of its Northwest home. The Lightcatcher is the first museum in Washington State built to LEED Silver standards and includes a green roof and rainwater harvesting strategies that will be highlighted for public education.
In joining the Whatcom Museum's original home, the historic Old City Hall, and the Syre Education Center, the Lightcatcher adds 42,000 square feet of gallery, education, storage and public spaces to its campus between Prospect, Flora and Grand in the heart of Bellingham's cultural district.
The Lightcatcher's design and construction were funded through a combination of public and private funds, with the majority coming through the Bellingham/Whatcom Public Facilities District (PFD), an entity created in 2002 by the Bellingham City Council and the Whatcom County Council. PFDs were authorized by the state legislature for the purpose of creating regional centers to benefit local populations through new facilities that serve as an economic spur. The PFD receives a portion (one-third of one percent) of sales taxes collected by the state in Whatcom County.
The opening of the Lightcatcher completes the final, and largest, project under the PFD's authority to create a cultural district in Bellingham.
"Because of its imaginative design and beautiful materials, this building will be a magnet for the community, drawing thousands of people to its exhibitions and to the civic center area," Dunham Gooding, PFD Board President, said. "The community will have cultural and educational experiences at a new level, and the affect on regional tourism to Bellingham is expected to be very significant."
Remaining funds for the Lightcatcher have been raised privately by the Campaign for the Arts through the Whatcom Community Foundation.
"The Lightcatcher is a gift for the community, from the community," Campaign For the Arts President Ken Culver said. "The whole arts community is absolutely delighted that we were able to bring all these various entities together to create this cornerstone of our new arts and culture district.
Located in the heart of Bellingham's cultural district, the Whatcom Museum, a non-profit organization operated jointly by the City of Bellingham and the Whatcom Museum Foundation, provides innovative and interactive educational programs and exhibitions about art, nature and Northwest history. The Museum's collections contain more than 200,000 artifacts and art pieces of regional importance, including a vast photographic archive. The Museum is accredited nationally by the American Association of Museums and is a Smithsonian Institution affiliate.
Updated: Nov 17, 2009
