de Young Museum

The de Young Museum you see before you is draped in a massive skin of over seven thousand copper panels. These panels are dimpled and perforated with custom patterns designed to mimic the way sunlight filters through the trees of Golden Gate Park. The architects specifically chose copper for its living quality, knowing that the metal would slowly oxidize over decades, shifting from its original reddish-brown to earthy tones and eventually a soft green that helps the entire building settle into the surrounding forest.