Museum Consultant

George Sexton Associates of Washington, DC has brought an established yet innovative approach to the field of museum planning, exhibition design and lighting design in 25 years in practice. This renowned firm has an extensive history of involvement with complex museum and architectural projects, as exemplified through work with the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Denver Art Museum, the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts in Norwich, England, the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco and the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA.

As firm principal George Sexton says, “We are delighted to be one part of a tripartite team that will be working on this stimulating project. The opportunity to work with well-known and world-class museum collections is both challenging and exciting. This museum project will be unique in its urban setting and the context of the overall complex.”

George Sexton Associates is a full service design firm with a distinct strength in museum planning, exhibition design and lighting design, geared toward optimal project performance and client satisfaction, and ready and able to take on any design related challenge.

As a design firm they have had the opportunity to work in a team setting with a wide range of architects, museum directors, curators and conservators in establishing planning and design solutions with tested expertise. George Sexton Associates is fully able to offer an interpretive approach to design that is user sympathetic and standards conscious, resulting in design solutions that fully satisfy the requirements of the client. The firm brings an uncompromised attitude toward maintaining the schedule and cost control of each project with solutions that don't sacrifice the overall design approach.

George Sexton Associates' design philosophy, which is exemplified in projects with the Dallas Museum of Art, the Denver Museum of Art and the Cincinnati Art Museum, is guided by the following principles:

Optimizing Collaboration among Design Disciplines – Approaching every design project by dissolving the boundaries between planning, urban design, architecture and exhibit design, in order to conceive of the project as one seamless undertaking.

Beginning the Design Process with Research – Rigorous gathering of cultural, historical and demographic data, and pedestrian, vehicular, regulatory and infrastructure patterns allows for new ideas and approaches to the situation.

Tailoring the Building's Image to the Organization's Culture and Identity – Having a practice grounded in understanding and representing the very particular culture of an institution based as much upon its institutional mission as its physical characteristics. A project's innovative architectural solutions result from careful analysis and planning, as well as a clear approach to the architectural language of a project. So too a convincing architectural project must resolve itself through a very high level of interior detailing and through a strong sense of materials.

Promoting the Pleasure and Enjoyment of Using the Building – No design process can be successful if the building does not encourage positive experiences among its users. The success of the project will center on more than usability and the day-to-day feel of spaces; it will center on the excitement and energy the building creates.

Encouraging People to Interact with One Another – Indoor and outdoor spaces, gallery layouts, etc. should all serve the life of the center and its relationship with other major urban efforts in a city. People creatively interact in buildings that memorable not only the first time, but throughout an experience. This approach is a benchmark of making a signature building that is only exceeded in design excellence by the quality of experience it creates for the people who use it.

George Sexton received his Bachelor of Architecture degree from Virginia Tech University in 1971 and has over 30 years experience in the design and installation fields. Prior to forming his own firm in 1980, he worked with such organizations as the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and the National Gallery of Art.

Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, CA	Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth in Fort Worth, TX
Museum of Modern Art in New York, NY	Museum of Modern Art in New York, NY
Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA	Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA
	Museum of Modern Art in New York, NY