Herzog and de Meuron Are Building a Museum Out of Wood and Memphis Is the Reason Why

Memphis has been known as the Hardwood Capital of the World for over a century. The museum opening there in December, decided to build with that in mind.

The new Memphis Art Museum, designed by Swiss firm Herzog and de Meuron with architect of record Archimania and landscape design by OLIN, is under construction on the Mississippi River bluff in downtown Memphis. It is among the first major museums in the United States built using laminated timber, specifically cross-laminated timber (CLT) and glulam beams, all regionally sourced. The wood structure is not hidden behind walls. It runs visibly through the lobby, galleries, classrooms, café and event spaces, making the material itself a feature of the experience.

The building covers 123,500 square feet on a full city block and replaces what was the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, the oldest and largest art institution in Tennessee, founded in 1916, with a collection of nearly 10,000 works spanning 5,000 years.

The exterior is clad in brick whose warm earthen tones were chosen to reference the clay banks of the Mississippi River. A glazed street-level facade makes the interior visible from the pavement, pulling the building into the life of the city rather than separating it. A shared public plaza with the adjacent Cossitt Library extends that civic intent further.

Inside, eighteen distinct exhibitions will organise the collection across galleries arranged in a continuous single-storey loop around a 10,000 square foot central courtyard. Five of those galleries have direct views of either the Mississippi or the courtyard. Light-filled classrooms with northern exposure are positioned for art-making rather than passive viewing.

At the top of the building is a 50,000 square foot rooftop sculpture garden, described by the museum as an art park in the sky, with native planting, sculptures, an event pavilion and unobstructed views of downtown Memphis and the river below.

The project expands gallery space by 50 percent compared to the former Brooks building and delivers 600 percent more art-filled free public space. The museum will be able to host more than 400 cultural and community events annually.

Herzog and de Meuron won the Pritzker Prize in 2001. This project was commissioned in 2019 and represents the institution's relocation from its former Overton Park site to the waterfront. Construction has advanced rapidly. By January 2026, the exterior facade was largely complete, and the timber framing was in place throughout the building.

Memphis opens the museum in December 2026, in a year the city has also seen new openings at the National Civil Rights Museum and the National Ornamental Metal Museum. The timber building on the bluff is the one most people will talk about.