A Machine for Driving

I’m going to let you in on a little secret about the dreams and desires of architects: the building types that we find the most pleasure in designing are not the ones you would suspect.  Of course, we all have our own individual passions and talents, but for many of us, I can think of one building type that gives us particular satisfaction: the automobile showroom.

So much of our work is (rightly) focused on the comfort and cultivation of people, that perhaps the chance to design a structure solely dedicated to the celebration of machines is a welcome change.

A good example of this is a building that TruexCullins just completed and is now open in South Burlington: the Audi Showroom at 1325 Shelburne Road.  You may have seen this ad recently in the Sunday Burlington Free Press:
 

German cars are known for their superior engineering, but the Audi brand today is just as much about beautiful design as anything else.  And the architecture of the automobile showroom is there to serve one function: to showcase these beautifully designed machines.

The Audi showroom in South Burlington is a pure glass box, with sharp lines and crisp edges that contrast fittingly against the sinuous curves of the automobile. Smooth, rectilinear metal panels wrap a pure geometric form. Large expanses of glass extend all the way to the ground, with no horizontal mullions to obstruct the view into the showroom.  In fact, the mullions are placed on the inside face of the glass to minimize any break in the transparent cube.

The roof passes overhead as a clear horizontal form, floating effortlessly over the glassy showroom, with no need for heavy columns.  This is repeated at the roof of the service bay, where customers take the experience one step further: by driving into the building, their own car becomes the one on display.


Architects’ fascination with cars is nothing new.  The man who started the love affair and introduced architecture to automobiles was the early modernist master Le Corbusier.
 
Corbu claimed that the house was a “machine for living”, and he liked to photograph his buildings with a modern automobile parked in the foreground, such as this famous shot of the 1927 Casa Weissen:

Today, automobile manufacturers themselves are pushing this marriage between architecture and cars, evident by a slew of ads that combine the two.  A good collection of these can be found on a blog by Donnie Silberman, such as this ad for Buick with the car parked in front of David Chipperfield’s World Cup Building in Valencia, Spain:

Or this one with a Nissan Altima at the Diamond Ranch High School by Morphosis:

 

In these ads, the architecture is always modern and linear, portraying a rigid sense of strength.  The buildings set up a sharp contrast with the fluid form of the cars, emphasizing motion and speed.  The architecture here is used to sell cars in print, just as the Audi showroom in South Burlington achieves the same goals in glass and steel.

Congratulations Diantha Korzun

TruexCullins Architecture and Interior Design has promoted Diantha S. Korzun of Cambridge to Associate. She is the daughter of Grace and Leonard Korzun of Shrewsbury, Vermont. 

Diantha Korzun, AIA, LEED, AP

Korzun is the President of The American Institute of Architecture of Vermont and the newly elected Secretary/Treasurer for the American Institute of Architects of New England, She successfully orchestrated a three-day AIANE conference in Burlington, Vermont. 

She received a Master in Architecture from the University of Washington and a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts from Carnegie Mellon University, with a minor in European Studies. Korzun is a registered licensed architect in the State of Vermont, the State of Wyoming and the State of Washington. She is a LEED accredited professional and she holds her NCARB Certificate.

For the past five years, Korzun has been the Project Architect and Manager in TruexCullins’ Education and Workplace Studio. As Project Architect she was responsible for overseeing the design of the recently completed King Arthur Flour Headquarters expansion project and  Anglo American School of Sofia Project in Bulgaria, anticipated to receive LEED Gold.  She was the LEED Team Administrator of the Heritage Flight building, which was awarded LEED Gold Certification and won the Efficiency Vermont Award and Governor’s Efficiently Award. She was also the LEED Team Administrator for the Currier Project in Hanover, NH.

King Arthur Flour's Headquarters in Norwich, Vermont

Current projects she is managing include the St. John International School in Belgium and the American International School in Bucharest. She is part of the team that is participating in the American School of Paris Competition.

A Sneak Preview of the Juniper Lounge

Anticipation is mounting on the west end of Cherry Street.  You may have seen the 200 foot crane towering over the downtown block as the city’s newest hotel takes shape.  Hotel Vermont is set to open in Spring 2013, and we are looking forward to a very grand opening.

This photo, taken earlier this month, shows the progress being made on the exterior envelope.  The hotel, designed by Smith Buckley Architects, occupies a formerly underutilized parcel on Cherry Street, between Macy’s and the Courtyard Marriott.  The hotel will be in an ideal downtown location, halfway between the waterfront and the Church Street marketplace.

Meanwhile, our work on the interior is continuing, with the design of natural materials, custom furnishings and dramatic lighting.

On the main floor, the heart of the hotel will be the Juniper Lounge.

With juices and pastries in the morning, and creative cocktails in the evening, this is a fluid and flexible space that will change accordingly throughout the day.  We recently produced these photorealistic renderings of the bar area, with actual materials and colors.  The bar features a local wood floor and wall finishes of white oak and black slate.  The space looks out to an outdoor terrace with a fire pit and lake views. (Click to enlarge.)

You can see these and more images on the Hotel Vermont Pinterest site.

AIA New England Conference & Design Awards

The American Institute of Architecture of New England (AIANE) will be hosting its 2012 Annual Conference in Burlington, Vermont. This is an excellent opportunity for architects from all over the region to exchange ideas, learn about current trends, tour beautifully designed buildings and meet other professionals in the field.

Tours will be given of buildings on college campuses, in historic downtown, on the waterfront. There will also be tours of net-zero houses.

Patricia Patkau, from Patkau Architects in Vancouver, British Columbia, will be the keynote speaker. The theme of the conference is "Design of Place". Patkau will present on how design can be responsive to the site, climate, culture and programs.

For more information visit AIA Conference Vermont

Meet the 52 Kids Foundation

Join us this Thursday, October 18 from 5:30 to 7:30pm for a special presentation on the 52 Kids Foundation.  This group, based in Charlotte, Vermont, is dedicated to teaching Ugandan children to live positively without aid.

This summer, Rolf joined a group of men known as “Team USA” for 10 days in the town of Kamuli, Uganda, working on one of the Foundation’s many initiatives:  repairing the local school, giving 52 kids the opportunity for primary and secondary education.

This Thursday the group will host a reception, presentation, and discussion (and some food and refreshment too!) at the Main Street Landing Film House (corner of College and Battery Streets in Burlington).

Come celebrate with everyone who has worked so hard to support the 52 Kids Foundation and meet the Uganda program director, Frank Woitera, on his first visit to the U.S. He’ll share his first-hand knowledge of the impact that the Foundation’s efforts have on the 52 wonderful kids they support as well as the ongoing challenges for the children and foundation.

RSVP via email to Colleen Brady at cpb513@comcast.net

For more on the 52 Kids Foundation, visit their website at www.52kids.org

A Shaggy Dog Story: The Roland Batten Memorial Lecture 2012

Once again TruexCullins is pleased to be supporting the annual Roland Batten Memorial Lecture on Architecture and Design. This year's event will be held this Wednesday, October 17 at 6:00 pm at 301 Williams Hall on the University of Vermont Campus.  All are welcome to attend.

The guest speaker this year is Architect Louis Mannie Lionni, who will be giving a lecture on the story of our hometown of Burlington, Vermont.  "Heresies: Cultural Criticism in the Context of the Commercialization, Privatization and Militarization of a Small New England City.  A Shaggy Dog Story."

Louis Mannie Lionni is the Editor and Publisher of 05401, a small town magazine that is "committed to promoting an integrative, multidisciplinary dialogue in the public realm."

In Lionni's Own Words:

Architecture can be thought of as a sub-set of the great synthesizing categories: art, science, politics, sociology, philosophy. But architecture, in its built form, ultimately gives material being to all of these, and preserves and expresses their conflicts and contradictions over time.

Architectural criticism attempts to describe the relationship of the built environment to the existential environment. In formal terms ; in functional terms.

The subject of architectural criticism can range from the structure of poetry to the poetry of structure, from graphic design to urban and regional planning.

05401 ostensibly deals with architecture, planning, food and romance in Burlington, Vermont, on the east coast of Lake Champlain. The thing about it is that I often meet friends who tell me how much they enjoyed (liked) the most recent issue and then ask me without a trace of sarcasm what it’s about. I find that puzzling.

In any case, it would be irresponsible to overlook – in this context – the militarization of our environment, its privatization and commercialization, the F35 controversy and PlanBTV.

The lecture and reception are sponsored by the Roland Batten Memorial Fund, TruexCullins Architecture & Interior Design, and The University of Vermont’s Visiting Artists, Art Critics and Art Historian’s Lecture Series. The events are free and open to the public.

For more information call the UVM Art Department, 802-656-2014.

TruexCullins Fundraiser

CALL TO ARCHITECTS!

Bird House Silent Auction for King Street Youth Center.

Clients, vendors and other friends of TruexCullins are welcome to design and donate a bird.  Houses are due on Monday, December 3^rd.

Since space is limited, TruexCullins reserves the right to select the best to show.

For more information: contact Carmen George at 802.488.8232.

Digital Crayon: Article 5 - 21st Century Learning

posted by David Epstein, AIA, LEED AP

Another key driver behind school change is the need to align facilities with the way schools now teach  (or at least want to). The full spectrum of changes in education these days is generally termed “21st Century Learning”. This term refers to ideas like student-centered learning, project-based inquiry, interdisciplinary themes, etc.  The goal is to either build or adapt school environments that facilitate this kind of learning.

As you know, many of our schools were built post World War II and consist of a small office area, multipurpose space, library and classrooms. They lack the kind of spaces needed for the modern teaching paradigm.

What exactly does this mean? Well first of all there is less emphasis on lecture based instruction, especially at the younger grades. There is more work in small groups and more project work. At the same time, there is more collaboration among teachers which results in the need to bring grade level teams together for presentations, meetings, etc. As a result, we consistently hear about the need for small spaces for small group work and large spaces for team gatherings. These are spaces that a post-War school just doesn’t have.

21st Century Learning concepts also recognize that kids learn in different ways and as a result, need different modalities in their school spaces to optimize learning. Some students are very hands-on learners, others require quiet space for deep immersion, while others thrive in a social environment. Creating flexible environments that provide multiple pathways for learning is key in supporting student learning.

As you can probably surmise, incorporating these concepts requires more space than the traditional school. After all, nothing is more space efficient than rows of tablet chairs. In fact, when touring a school, we often look at the furniture. The kind and arrangement of the furniture in a classroom often hints at the kind of learning taking place. We often engage our interior design team to assist with selecting furniture that best needs the needs of the school.

Next Digital Crayon - Article 6 - The Learning Commons

Last Digital Crayon - Article 4 - Traffic and Safety

Digital Crayon: Article 4 - Traffic and Safety

posted by David Epstein, AIA, LEED AP

Our last article was about growth and community. Another big issue with virtually all schools we work with is on-site traffic congestion and safety. Everybody is driving their kids to schools these days. This results in backups and delays, both on and off the school grounds.  Because of this, people park everywhere and kids cross through travel lanes, between cars – it’s a wonder accidents don’t happen more often.

There are many design strategies that can be employed to mitigate the problems, but often there are just too many cars. We often gently suggest what’s known as “demand side management” which is an effort to reduce car usage with techniques such as improved bus service, incentives, sidewalks, bike racks and/or carpooling. This is often met with resistance, especially in international schools where safety is a big concern. People like to drive their cars!
In addition to physical improvements, there are a few things that can be done operationally that we have seen help. One is having helpers available to help small kids exit and enter their car so that the driver does not to have to get out. This seems to speed up the pickup and delivery process. One school we work with even calls out the students names so they are ready when the car arrives. In the end, the key to decreasing congestion is improving flow.

One of the key concerns, and rightly so, is safety. This can be improved by separating bus and parent drop-off areas. If there is not enough space for this and students must cross a travelled way, it should be only at well-marked designated areas. To ensure this happens, we often have to create barriers between parking areas and travel lanes to guide pedestrians to the safe crossings. We try to do this with landscaping when we can, but sometimes a nice looking fence will have to do!

Next Digital Crayon - Article 5 - 21st Century Learning

Last Digital Crayon - Article 3 - Growth and Capacity

Digital Crayon: Article 3 - Growth and Capacity

posted by David Epstein, AIA, LEED AP

 

First let’s talk about some of big drivers behind a facility project. Ideally, these are defined in a strategic plan, but that is not always the case.  Having a strategic plan as starting point gives the school leadership team a clear mandate for pursuing its primary facility goals.  Often, however, needs emerge from the planning process itself. We might start with growth issues, for example, and find out that collaborative spaces are a dire need on campus.

Growth and capacity issues are classic drivers of a facility project, especially with international school these days. Understanding the parameters around the issues is important.  Is it to meet market demands, or provide richer program offerings? How big does the school want to grow? Over what period of time? Is it likely to expand evenly across all grades or only in certain areas? Having answers to these questions will help clarify the planning task ahead for the architect.

Let’s spend a little more time on the growth issue. Many times we are asked by our clients: what is the capacity of our campus? How many kids can we accommodate? Our answer is often: depends.  We say this because we have worked with schools with little to no green space. They bus their kids to shared fields.  We know we can fit a lot of program on a site, especially if multiple story buildings are allowed. The question for the school is: can it live with these impacts to its open space? To be clear: the architect’s job is to show the extent of the expanded facilities so the school can determine if these impacts are acceptable.

Another issue with growth is sense of community. Universally, we hear that people love a small school feel, meaning a sense of community where everyone knows each other. Maintaining that feeling becomes difficult as a school grows. Many of the larger schools tackle this by creating schools within schools.  A middle school, for example, can work hard to create a sense of belonging among its students and teachers. This can be reinforced by design. Providing separate entrances and social spaces within the “smaller” school can support a sense of identification with that entity. Likewise, a single campus entrance can reinforce the notion of the community as a whole.

Enhancing the sense of community is a common theme for schools these days. And not just among students. Schools are looking for spaces for teachers to connect and collaborate with each other, and places for the larger community to gather together.

Next Digital Crayon - Article 4, Traffic and Safety

Last Digital Crayon - Article 2, The Planning Process

Please post your thoughts and suggestions!