Henry Art Gallery, Fifteenth Avenue Northeast at Northeast Campus Parkway, Seattle, King County, WA

Significance: The Horace C. Henry Art Gallery was the first public art museum in the state of Washington. Funds for the building construction and its initial collection were donated to the University of Washington by a prominent civil leader and Seattle businessman, Horace C. Henry. The Henry Gallery, designed by the Seattle architect Carl F. Gould in 1925-1926, was constructed in 1926-1927. The building is architecturally significant as one of the finest of Gould's twenty-eight buildings on the campus. It embodies his Beaux-Arts training, and his interest in physical planning and historical precedent as organizing techniques for the design of the campus and its buildings. The Henry Art Gallery opened in February 1927 with four galleries exhibiting the Horace C. Henry collection of paintings and prints, and two galleries showing special exhibits. Until she left the position in 1948 the gallery's first curator, Halley Brewster Savery, was instrumental in introducing contemporary art to Seattle. The gallery has served as a principal exhibit space for contemporary are in the Northwest, and presented over 1,300 temporary exhibits during the last 68 years. It is thus significant to cultural life in Seattle and the region. Architecturally the Henry Art Gallery retains most of its original character, particularly at the exterior and the main public floor. The building's exterior is characterized by its simple rectangular massing, decorative patterned brick and cast-stone ornament, overall symmetrical emphasis, and a formal south-facing entry. The interior is also symmetrical with a series of interconnected, naturally-lit galleries of varied proportions. The design of the Henry Gallery is a precursor to Gould's 1931 designs for the Seattle Art Museum. It demonstrates his mastery of spatial proportions, interior and natural lighting, and resolution of programmatic issues of sequence, circulation and exhibit needs. Stylistically the building suggests Gould's transition from Gothic Revival, the architectural idiom used throughout the University campus, to Moderne and Art Deco styles. The exterior setting of the gallery has changed considerably from its original concept and construction. Gould's vision called for the gallery as a part of a formal Beaux-Arts cultural complex which would act as the northern terminating edge of a formal entry axis from the west to the campus. The current site is congested due to a nearby entry to a large, underground parking garage to the north and east, and a pedestrian skybridge to the west which were constructed in the early 1970s. In the 1980s plans were considered to expand the Henry Art Gallery to accommodate increased collection storage, preparation spaces and offices, an auditorium and greater exhibit space. Designs were developed in 1993-1993, and construction has begun. The current expansion and addition project is funded in part by a federal grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Unprocessed Field note material exists for this structure: N345
Survey number: HABS WA-213