OF INTEREST

 

An Expert in Mobile Architecture Added to Jury for Mobile AIDS Health Clinic Design Competition

 

Architecture for Humanity’s Mobile HIV/AIDS Health Clinic for Africa design competition has added Jennifer Siegal, Founder and Principal of Los Angeles-based Office of Mobile Design (OMD), to the distinguished list of jurors. Founded in 1998, OMD focuses on developing "mobile" architecture, and designing and constructing portable, demountable, and relocatable structures. Siegal will join fellow architects Rick Joy, Reuben Mutiso, and Shigeru Ban, alongside doctors and HIV/AIDS specialists Dr. Peter Lamptey, Dr. Shaffiq Essajee, and Kate Bourne, in jurying the entries for the competition. The deadline is November 1, and winners will be announced on World AIDS Day, December 1, 2002.

 

Dream On…

 

You have only until August 25 to view “Dream House,” an exhibit at the Michael Hirschfeld Gallery at City Gallery Wellington in New Zealand. Six Wellington architects, who together span three generations of architectural practice in New Zealand, were invited to design dream dwellings without having to deal with the practicalities of budgets, clients, and physical buildings. According to exhibition curator Rebecca Wilson, “The kinds of dreaming at play in “Dream House” are various: impossible daydreams and serious fantasies, recurring dreams and dream realities, lived dreams and dream lives. What the resulting houses share, though, is an occupation of thresholds and a blurring of boundaries both conceptual and physical.” Participating architects are: Stuart Gardyne, Architecture +; Dorita Hannah, Amanda Yates & Hannah Davies; Sam Kebbell with John Daish; Michael O’Brien and Jason Whiteley/Herriot + Melhuish: Architecture Ltd.; William Toomath; and Evžen Novak/Studio of Pacific Architecture Ltd.

 

IIDA and IIDA Foundation Foster New Relationship

 

Anita Barnett, FIIDA, IIDA President, has announced that the Board of Directors of IIDA (International Interior Design Association) and the Board of Trustees of the IIDA Foundation have approved the formation of a newly structured relationship that more closely aligns the strategic objectives between the two. The most visible effect of the new alignment is the overlap between the Association and Foundation Boards, and the re-focusing of the Foundation’s mission to support education and research for the profession through the outreach of IIDA. IIDA will partner with the Foundation to help promote the Foundation’s strategies, assist with delivering new and existing programs, and increase Foundation’s presence in the industry.

 

Tile Tales

 

The Habitat for Humanity of Greater Orlando reports ongoing benefits from donations of excess materials made to them this past May by Coverings 2002, the international exposition for ceramic tile and stone. Approximately five truckloads of tile and stone, from the set-up of hundreds of major exhibits at the exposition, were donated to the charity at the conclusion of the four-day event. Because the donation amounted to far more than Habitat for Humanity could possibly use, the charity, under the direction of Shirley Jones, Warehouse Manager, has already sold off odd lots of material. The remainder, described by Jones as “awesome” consists of at least 62 palettes of granite, marble, and tile that will be available at the Orlando Habitat for Humanity Restore (a.k.a. thrift shop) scheduled to open this October that will include a wide range of building materials.

 

Coverings 2002 also donated six colorfully tiled concrete benches to Give Kids The World Village, a 51-acre, non-profit resort in Orlando for children with life-threatening illnesses whose one wish is to visit Disney World. The six benches will be placed around the Village Fishing Hole behind Amberville Station. Six different American tile companies have volunteered to undertake the task of designing and installing the colorful mesh-mounted tiles on the five-foot long, backless benches. The benches are the gift of Coverings’ sponsors: Tile Council of America (TCA), CTDA, ASCER, Assopiastrelle, NTCA, and NAFCD. Participating in the project are Summitville Tile; M.E. Tile Company; Michelle Griffoul Studios; Ironrock Capital, Inc.; Crossville Tile; and Quarry Tile Company. Visit Coverings for information about next year’s show, March 24-27, 2003, in Orlando.

 

ON THE BOARDS

 

Cleared for Takeoff

 

Derong Liu, Project Director for of the new Baiyun International Airport for the Aviation Division of Parsons Corporation, provided his insight into what may be the most efficient, passenger-friendly civil airport complex in Asia. The new 1,456-hectare airport complex will be almost four times larger than the current Guangzhou airport, and will be "linked perfectly with downtown Guangzhou,” Liu said. “It has been designed to quickly move people – from plane to curbside and beyond. We have blended the best in American airport design concepts with Chinese practice." The design includes an International-standard convention center, a 500-800-room hotel, and an exhibition center – all inside the airport terminal area. The new airport will be accessible via a high-speed Metro (currently under construction) or an ultra-modern, three-lane freeway that is already open for use. China Southern Airlines, the largest airline in The People's Republic of China, is on tap to be the primary airline "tenant" when the first phase of the new airport opens in October 2003. By 2010, when the airport is completed (at a total cost of about $2.4 billion), it is expected to handle 80 million arrivals and departures and several million tons of cargo annually. The project team also includes URS Greiner and the Guangdong Provincial Architectural Design Institute.

 

A Modernista Mercado Make-over

 

London-based Borgos Dance & Partners is transforming the historic 20,000-square-meter Mercado de Colon, a turn-of-the-century market hall in Valencia, Spain. Designed by municipal architect Francisco Mora and built in 1916, the Mercado is located in the Eixample, the city’s most exclusive retail and residential area. Influenced by Gaudi, Mora’s project has been described as “an epiphany of Modernista architecture and a fusion of historicism and modernism.” The existing building is being refurbished and landscaped to create a new civic plaza with café terraces, retail pavilions, and restaurants, while retaining its original use as a food and flower market. The revitalization of the historic building will be an important addition to the urban fabric of the city and will join Valencia’s impressive catalogue of modern architecture. The project will stabilize the original 18-meter-high ironwork trusses using mining technology, and create four new underground levels for public use and tenant parking. Level monitors are being used throughout the excavation and construction process to ensure no structural deviation or settlement is affecting the existing monument or the adjacent buildings.

 

The design respects the existing historic structure by using a rich palette of materials including black granite, limestone, steel, cast glass, and cultured teak. The new design features a terraced atrium on new lower ground levels and an 8-meter-high water feature that forms the end elevation to the new atrium. Built entirely of glass, the water wall will complement the six new pavilions that house a deli, café bar, and kiosks within elegant transparent structural glazed enclosures designed to reduce the apparent volume of the new addition by dissolving the barrier between internal and external space. Due for completion at the beginning of 2003, the restoration of the Mercado de Colon will reinstate one of the city’s most iconic monuments.

 

ECHO: A One-Stop Shop for Campus Housing

 

DLR Group is now part of Evergreen Campus Housing Organization (ECHO), a new consortium of specialists committed to delivering the best student housing at the most affordable cost to institutions that want to outsource the development, design, construction, and management of new on-campus housing. DLR Group will be providing comprehensive architectural design and engineering services to ECHO team that includes Evergreen Realty Group (development and property management), DiCarlo Construction Management, and GSSW (financing and asset management). The turnkey approach to campus housing is intended to save institutions time and money. For more information, contact ECHO Director Tom Sabin at tom.sabin@americo.com or call (toll free) 866-880-9281.

 

HONORS

 

AIA Minnesota 25-Year Award

 

The Minneapolis Clinic of Psychiatry & Neurology in Golden Valley, Minnesota, has won prestigious 25-Year Award from AIA Minnesota. Completed in 1967, the building was designed by Bruce Abrahamson, FAIA, of Minneapolis-based Hammel Green & Abrahamson, Inc. (HGA). AIA Minnesota established the award in 1981 to recognize exemplary architectural projects, 25 years or older, which have withstood the test of time. The jurors, all from Minnesota, were: Wilt Berger, Assoc. AIA, Principal, Miller Hanson Partners; Tracey Jacques, AIA, Elness Swenson Graham Architects, Inc.; and Dale Mulfinger, FAIA, SALA Architects, Inc.

 

In 1965, the building committee had definite aesthetic and space requirements for the new clinic. It was to be warm, inviting, and residential in character – primarily for the welfare of the patients. The building that grew out of the program consists of a long series of interrelated, but semi-independent forms that hug the ground and are kept in the horizontal plane by berms and deep overhangs at second-floor and roof levels. The clinic stands as is: No alterations have been made. The jurors lauded the use of high-quality materials – red wood, stone, copper, glass – which contributed greatly to the building‘s “longevity and weather-worthiness… It sat well there yesterday and still sits there well today…The clinic includes several metaphors for psychiatry and has a nice serene quality, underscored by its simplicity. It was and continues to be a great place to perform psychiatry.”

 

Michigan Modernism Honored

 

McIntosh Poris Associates, a young firm in Birmingham, recently won two Awards of Honor from AIA Michigan. A 1925 bank building has been transformed into Panacea, a vibrant, stylish club that is helping to revive Detroit nightlife. The juxtaposition of lighting and materials, such as scrim curtains, perforated metal, colored acrylics, and frosted glass, add lively layers to the city’s newest hot spot. The second award was for the Steinhardt residence (which also received an M-Award from the Masonry Institute of Michigan). The contemporary, 3,500-square-foot urban townhouse is very open with minimal intervention in the space and several levels at play. Creative use of industrial materials – such as steel, masonry, and concrete – add to the distinct design.

 

Media Make-over

 

Fanning/Howey Associates, Inc. turned an otherwise dull and out-of-date media center at Battle Creek Central High School in Michigan into an expanded, light-filled space. The firm received two citations from American School & University Educational Interiors Showcase. In 2002, the panel of Educational Interiors Showcase judges honored 14 entries with Citations out of the 101 projects selected for publication. The Battle Creek project was recognized with a Silver Citation. The jury commented: “Nice volume of space appropriate for a media center. Good blend of technology and effective circulation patterns.” The 9,000-square-foot addition was a part of an $8 million modernization and expansion project completed in August 2001. The firm also received a Bronze Citation for the commons areas, Zionsville Middle School, Zionsville, Indiana. Three additional projects have also been selected to appear in the August 2002 American School & University Educational Interiors Showcase.

 

 

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

 

Valerio Appointed to GSA Design Excellence Program

 

Joseph M. Valerio, FAIA, Principal of Valerio Dewalt Train Associates of Chicago, has been appointed to the General Services Administration’s (GSA) Design Excellence Program as a member of its National Register of Peer Professionals. Valerio will participate as a private-sector member. He is currently serving on his first evaluation board. In support of the GSA’s Design Excellence Program, the architects elected to the National Register of Peer Professionals assist the GSA in conducting architect selections, interviews and design concept reviews for public building projects such as courthouses, ports of entry, and border stations throughout the country. Members also serve as jurors for national design competitions, participate in public design charettes to improve government buildings and public spaces, and work to promote the integration of artwork into the public realm.

 

New Arrivals at Hillier Philadelphia

 

Nicholas Garrison, AIA, OAQ (Order of Architects of Quebec) has been named Director of Design for the Philadelphia office of Hillier. A gifted designer in Hillier's Education studio since 1993, Garrison has been a key member of design teams on highly complex projects including museums, libraries, higher education buildings, and international schools in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Included in his portfolio is the Canadian Center for Architecture, which won a National AIA Honor Award and Canada's Governors' General Award. His work has been exhibited at the Canadian Center for Architecture and at the Venice Biennale among others, and he has taught and lectured at McGill and Princeton Universities. He joins Peter Hoggan, AIA, Jim Carter, AIA, and Michael Levin, AIA, in the management of the Philadelphia office.

 

Also joining Hillier’s Philadelphia office are:

Structural engineer and registered architect, Richard I. Ortega, PE, RA, closed his practice of 15 years to join the Historic Preservation practice group as the Director of Preservation Technology. He is currently directing the restoration of Lincoln Cottage in Washington, DC, the summer home of the president and his family, which is under the auspices of the National Trust for Historic Preservation; the building envelope assessment of the Kline Biology Tower at Yale University; and the adaptive reuse of the former State Supreme Court and Library Buildings in Richmond, Virginia. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Association for Preservation Technology International.

Urban designer David Chen joins Hillier’s Urban Design practice group from

Wallace Roberts &Todd in Philadelphia. He is currently working on a development plan for Western Monmouth County, NJ, and guidelines for the Cramer Hill Commercial Corridor in Camden, NJ.

Jeffrey Kick, IIDA, and Andrea Borrelli, Associate IIDA, are both joining the firm as senior interiors project managers. Kick was previously with O'Brien, Travis, Jaccard of Washington, DC. He is currently programming new space for the law firm of Post & Schell in Center City, Philadelphia. Borrelli joins Hillier from Partridge Tackett Architects of Philadelphia. She is currently managing disaster recovery programs for 47 of Sovereign's retail banks throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and New York, managing the bank's Berks County consolidation efforts, and designing new space for the Graham Company, a Philadelphia-based insurance company.

 

Gregory Anderson Joins Ellerbe Becket as Chief Financial Officer

 

Gregory C. Anderson has joined Ellerbe Becket as its chief financial officer. Anderson has 25 years of financial management experience, most recently as vice president of finance for Banta Corporation’s Global Turnkey Group in North America. In addition to financial responsibilities, Anderson has led operations, marketing and information technology functions for several companies during his career. Prior to Banta Corporation, he held financial management positions for national companies such as Grant Thornton and B. Dalton Company. He will be based in the firm’s Minneapolis office.

 

Editor’s Note: There are deadlines for several competitions coming up at the end of August and early September…check out the ANN Calendar.

 

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