Background

During its relocation to Lower Manhattan, the Whitney Museum of American Art significantly expanded the space it held for both exhibitions and programs, giving the public the ability to view an unsurpassed collection of modern and contemporary American art. Designed by world-renowned architect Renzo Piano, the museum’s new building includes 4,645 m2 (50,000 ft2) of indoor gallery space and 1,208 m2 (13,000 ft2) of outdoor exhibition space. All of which is nestled alongside the Hudson River in the West Village of New York City.

The new six-story space is not only well thought out but also a marvel of architectural expression. The former curator of the museum, Donna De Salvo, believed it would continue to be shaped from the ground up by artists for many decades. However, in order to let the artists’ creative and emotional exhibitions continue, the museum’s structure had to be built with a long service life in mind. This too is shaped from the ground up, which starts with a concrete foundation.

Solution

As the museum sits alongside the Hudson River on Manhattan Island, it is subject to hydrostatic water pressure. To make sure the museum’s building remained watertight, one of Kryton’s distributors, Dry Concrete L.L.C., was called in. They knew that in order to thwart water infiltration and the danger of early deterioration it posed, they needed a permeability-resistant admixture for hydrostatic pressure (PRAH). As a result, the team chose to use Kryton’s KIM, a PRAH product that was best able to perform in such a challenging high-risk environment.

In turn, KIM will continue to perform for the life of the concrete, self-sealing cracks up to 0.5 mm. That’s because it not only protects the concrete from water infiltration but improves the concrete by ensuring it is a durable, resilient, and sustainable structure. This remains the case because as of this writing, the Whitney Museum of American Art is open, offering a dry and durable location where people can enjoy the works of artists for many years to come.