The Pilara Foundation chose to create a home for its critically acclaimed photography collection in an unlikely location: a historic timber-framed warehouse perched over the San Francisco Bay. In reimagining the long-vacant structure, where importers once stowed goods from abroad, Envelope found inspiration in the pier’s utilitarian past and the idea of “active storage.”

Museums and galleries typically have two discrete realms: public spaces for exhibitions and private spaces for stewardship and storage. At Pier 24, a strategy merges storage and display. Photographic works are viewed in a matrix of room-sized gallery "boxes” located throughout the expansive space. Gaps between gallery walls offer glimpses of spaces beyond, while the timber ceiling structure instills a quiet sense of drama.

Connections to the city and the landscape anchor the Pier 24 experience. Visitors enter from the Embarcadero through a historic archway tracing remnants of an old rail spur. Inside, at a bayside corner lounge, windows replace walls, accentuating the piers’ waterfront setting.