Wyoming museum by HGA draws upon "Old West" architecture
A wooden boardwalk and pale timber cladding are among the elements used by architectural studio HGA to create History Jackson Hole, a museum in Wyoming, USA, meant to feel both "modern and timeless".
The museum is located on a prominent site in downtown Jackson, which features historic architecture dating to the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Situated at the base of the Rocky Mountains, the town lies within the Jackson Hole valley in northwestern Wyoming, which is well known for its ranching heritage, Indigenous communities and outdoor recreational activities.
The building replaces a former museum – called the Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum – that was dark and mostly closed off from the street. The new facility is meant to better engage with the surroundings and offer more space.
Situated on a quarter-acre site, the campus consists of a main museum building, two historic cabins and outdoor space.
The campus was designed to respect the town's architectural language – which includes glass storefronts and wooden boardwalks – while incorporating a contemporary aesthetic.
"There is a nod to the Jackson 'Old West' style, but through an authentic approach that feels both modern and timeless," said San Francisco-based HGA, which collaborated on the project with local firm Prospect Studio.
Totalling 13,200 square feet (1,226 square meters), the main building is rectangular in plan and has two stories and a basement level. Its height aligns with the area's low-rise buildings.
Facades are clad in Alaskan yellow cedar. Large windows create an inviting feel and offer visual connections to downtown and an adjacent park called Greenspace.
The front elevation is lined with a wooden boardwalk, which mimics those fronting other buildings in the historic downtown district.
The building contains exhibition space for the museum's collection, which includes 7,200 objects, 19,200 photographs, 8,200 records and 460 oral histories. The exhibition design was led by G&A.
The building also features flexible rooms for meetings and community use, offices, a gift shop, an archive and research centre, and a roof terrace.
Sustainable features include thick insulation, triple-pane windows and low-flow plumbing fixtures.
Throughout the campus, the team used materials that fit with the context, such as timber, stone and warm-toned metal. The use of chinked logs – which involves filling in gaps between logs with a special sealant – draws upon the "authentic Western expressions of timber".
Funded via a public-private partnership, the project involved extensive community engagement, including outreach to local residents and Indigenous communities.
"This stakeholder engagement, in turn, informed various aspects of the design, particularly as it tells the comprehensive narrative of the history of Jackson," the team said.
The overall design strikes a balance between "integrating both the Western character and historic relevance of downtown Jackson, alongside a modern museum reflecting Jackson Hole's present and future," HGA added.
Other projects in Jackson include a temporary art installation by CLB Architects that consisted of cross-laminated timber panels arranged in a circle, and a hotel renovation by Studio Tack that entailed converting run-down structures into a cosy retreat filled with wooden finishes and decor.
The photography is by Albert Vecerka of ESTO.
Project credits:
Architect: HGA
HGA team: Joan Soranno, John Cook, David Wilson, Roxanne Nelson, Natalie Pullen
Local architect: Prospect Studio
Exhibition designer: G&A
Civil engineer: Nelson Engineering
General contractor: ACM
Owner's representative: Jason Berning Project Management
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