Vision and Collaboration
The Cincinnati Art Museum had an ambitious goal-to extend the mission of the museum outside the building while creating stronger connections with the surrounding community. In 2016, the museum tasked Architects with Emersion Design and Landscape Architects, Human Nature, Inc. of Cincinnati, Ohio, to craft a site master plan that establishes a long-term vision for achieving this goal. One key component of the master plan was a stairway connection down a steep, forested hillside, that surrounded the museum on three sides.

The stairs allow the museum site to be more visible at the major intersection at the entrance to a city park and provide a stronger connection to two under-served neighborhoods. In parallel with this effort, the community was interested in an "Art Walk" that connects the nearby Mount Adams neighborhood, the Playhouse in the Park Theater, the Art Museum, and beyond via a walkway gallery of features.

Out of the convergence of these two initiatives arose the idea of the Art Climb. As the project began, the museum's director began to wonder whether there could be a way to make the steps themselves a work of art and develop a curated venue for artwork, performances, fitness, and quiet contemplation in the forest. The design team welcomed the challenge to create such a vibrant civic space and worked closely with the museum staff to create a compelling vision for the stairs.

After the concept was approved by the museum staff, the design team began working to develop a site plan for the wall and paving character, materials, construction details, and overall lighting strategy.

Engineering Marvels
One of the site conditions that posed a significant challenge was the geology as the site's bedrock consists of unconsolidated, interbedded limestone, and shale that is very unstable. Because of this, the geotechnical and structural engineers had to develop several strategies to mitigate the possibility of failure, including the use of micro piles and soil nails. The construction crews had to navigate equipment, move materials, and build on very steep hillsides, which included the installation of permanent erosion control mats on the steepest slopes to reduce erosion, and keep plantings in place.

 

The Art Climb's 194 monumental steps lead to a series of terraces that accommodate artwork, seating, picnic tables, and performance spaces.

The edges of the pre-cast concrete stairs "tooth" into the landscape creating an irregular edge that allows plants and steps to intertwine and metaphorically embody the interplay between humans and nature. Stacked pre-cast walls, called "outcroppings," echo the geological strata of local limestone and define the upper and lower edges of the terraces and stair landings.

Lighting: The Nighttime Symphony
In addition to steps and walls, lighting plays a key role in the overall experience of the project. The lighting approach consists of several layers, including the forest, outcropping walls, terraces, handrails, and the welcoming gateway.
The design team went to great lengths to preserve as many trees as possible along the Art Climb to maintain a sense of climbing a hillside through a forest. The Forest of Light concept was developed to create a different experience at night.

26 LED column lights cascade down the hillside in a scattered pattern to simulate trees. The lighting is color-changing for added flexibility. They are usually red as part of the Cincinnati Art Museum's branding, but on special occasions-like the holidays, special events, or support for local sports teams-the lights are programmed with the appropriate colors. The most significant effect of the column lights is that they create a magical atmosphere in the forest at night that is both inviting and mysterious.

The outcropping walls that define the edges of the terraces and landings consist of stratified layers of textured pre-cast concrete that are especially enhanced at night. Integrated strip LED lights were mounted on the bottom of the wall cap to wash light on the face of the wall.

The terraces are designed to act as galleries for artwork, socializing, and performances. Light poles with multiple, aimable light fixtures allow more control over the direction and intensity of light to highlight specific features and spaces.

Since the Art Climb is open and lit at night, security cameras are mounted on the same light poles to enable the museum to monitor visitor safety. All the lights mentioned were selected and installed to create specific effects, but they generate only ambient light, not enough to make the steps safe to navigate at night which led the design team to brainstorm some sort of functional lighting. The selected stainless-steel handrails have built-in LED lights that illuminate the steps at night without blinding users. As an added benefit, the handrail lights create an interesting, glowing pattern on the steps that helps with wayfinding and draws visitors' sightline from the slope to the top of the Art Climb.

At the bottom of the steps, two large pre-cast plinths flank the entrance to the Art Climb at the intersection of two streets. The plinths echo similar features at the main entrance to the museum and create a welcoming gateway to the site. In-ground light fixtures wash the faces of the plinths at night, creating an inviting entry point, and illuminate the museum name and logo on the ends of the plinths.

Community and Cultural Impact
The public reception of the Art Climb has been phenomenal, averaging 3,000 to 4,000 visitors per month since it opened in 2020. The project has achieved the goal of connecting the museum to the surrounding community and increasing the diversity of visitors to the museum.

The Art Climb is meant to be a place that people visit, not simply pass through. In addition to providing places to sit and enjoy art and nature, the project encourages and supports physical fitness and other programmed activities, such as yoga, impromptu music concerts, ballet performances, and plein-air painting.

While originally designed to be an outdoor art gallery, the Art Climb in the end, demonstrates how the landscape itself can be a work of art.