MONTGOMERYCHOI
19 W HARGETT ST STE 305
RALEIGH NC 27601
HI@MONTGOMERYCHOI.COM
919 609 0519
INSTAGRAM
EABODY ESSEX MUSEUM EXPANSION

SALEM MA
CULTURAL
2019

WITH ENNEAD ARCHITECTS
While at Ennead Architects, Eliza was the project designer for an expansion and renovation of the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts. The Peabody Essex Museum in Salem originated in 1799 as the East India Marine Society and is now the nation’s oldest continuously operating museum. Since the completion of the original East India Marine Hall in 1825, numerous additions have been added to house the growing collection. The final addition provides additional gallery space while stitching together the museum’s sequence of past, present and future exhibits.

The east atrium acts as an interior “street” as the skylight highlights the newly restored west facade of the historic East India Marine Hall. We spent great effort refining the connection between the two buildings so as to preserve the historic integrity of the original building. In addition to acting as a circulation node for the surrounding galleries, the atrium is also used as a dedicated entrance for school groups, and an event space during off hours. It also bridges together the varying floor levels of the older additions to create one seamless museum experience.

The stone that wraps the new galleries on both the interior and exterior is a local granite called Chelmsford and is the same stone that was used on the front facade of the original 1825 East India Marine Hall.

The addition connects the streetscape activating a formally under-utilized public plaza. The project also includes a new garden designed by Nelson Byrd Woltz that acts as a quiet respite for museum visitors.
WORK


LAB



WHO




WE PRACTICE ARCHITECTURE BECAUSE WE LOVE CITIES
ELIZA MONTGOMERY is an architect, urbanist and native of downtown Raleigh.

Her experiences living and working in New York City over 12 years have given her both passion and expertise in solving complex architectural and urban issues. Prior to founding MontgomeryChoi, she was an Associate at Ennead Architects (formerly Polshek Partnership) in NYC for 7 years. There she designed a range of cultural, institutional and mixed use projects around the country and world. But her true passion lies in extending her design skills past the traditional field of architecture.

Eliza co-leads the Rethinking Refugee Communities project, a collaboration with Ennead Lab and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees that addresses the growing and protracted crises affecting the lives of refugees and their host communities. She's visited, analyzed and designed refugee settlements around the world including in Rwanda, Jordan and Nepal and has lectured extensively on the subject. Eliza has taught as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Pratt Institute and has led design workshops for multidisciplinary participants at The New School and other organizations.

Eliza is a registered Architect in North Carolina and New York. She is a Fellow at the Urban Design Forum in NYC. Eliza has a Master of Architecture degree from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies from Bard College.

WILL CHOI is an architect with a keen interest in the link between the shapes of our cities and the shapes of our communities. 

Through a decade of practice working with internationally recognized offices such as Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects and SHoP Architects, Will designed and led projects in urban centers around the country that fostered his appreciation for the way buildings may transform the surrounding communities, but more importantly, how communities may transform the design of the buildings, and ultimately cities. 

Will has held faculty positions at the Parsons School of Design in New York City, and maintains a passion for teaching. He can often be found serving as an invited juror at various institutions, including Columbia University, NYU, and NC State University. Will is a registered architect in North Carolina and New York.

Will holds a Master of Architecture from Harvard University, and a Bachelor of Design from University of Florida, but considers his best education the life lived hopping around great cities. That’s Seoul, New York, Boston, and of course, Raleigh!



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HI@MONTGOMERYCHOI.COM

919 609 0519

OFFICE

19 W HARGETT ST SUITE 305

RALEIGH NC 27601 

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