12.20.05

Editor's note: The Chapter is pleased to announce that Jessica Sheridan, Assoc. AIA, is the new editor of eOCULUS. Jessica is an architectural designer in the office of Martin E. Rich Architect, PC, and serves as a co-coordinator of the Southpoint: from Ruin to Rejuvenation competition being hosted by the Chapter's ENYA Committee. Jessica replaces Kristen Richards, whose duties will now focus exclusively on print OCULUS. You are encouraged to contact Jessica at the newly established address: eoculus@aiany.org.

We would like to wish everyone a Happy Holidays. See you next year!

Jessica Sheridan—eoculus@aiany.org
Kristen Richards—kristen@aiany.org
Dan Hillman—dhillman@aiany.org
Linda G. Miller

ABOVE THE FOLD

Job Opportunity
The AIA New York Chapter seeks a Development Associate for Corporate Relations
See aiany.org/jobs/DevelopmentAssociate.pdf for details.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

(For those reading eOculus via email, please note that clicking on a link in the Table of Contents may open this issue in your Web browser).

REPORTS FROM THE FIELD

• Bringing Cultures Together with Public Policy from New York to New Orleans—AIA NY Inaugural
• New Practices Roundtable: Technology Hits & Misses
• "There Is No Hope"—Zero Culture at Ground Zero
• Michael Sorkin's New Plan For Ground Zero
• Fostering a Cross-Disciplinary Environment—Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative
• Finnish Nature in New Jewish Museum
• Eastward Bound: "The Scene in China"
• Winning Work—2005 AIA NY Chapter Interior Architecture and Projects Awards

IN THE NEWS

Obituary: James Ingo Freed, FAIA | Gruzen Samton: El Museo del Barrio Expansion Breaks Ground | BBB Takes Center Stage at Apollo Theater | Lee H. Skolnick Architecture + Design Partnership: Aileron Center for Entrepreneurial Education, Ohio | Steven Holl Architects Wins Denver Justice Center Courthouse | Davis Brody Bond Goes Back to the Future: New York Public Library Map Division Restoration | It's Official: Norman Foster will Leave His Imprint on the Landscape of Ground Zero

AROUND THE AIA + THE CENTER FOR ARCHITECTURE

U.S. and European Architects Sign Mutual Recognition Agreement on Professional Qualifications | Capitol Capstones | Exploring the Experimental @ the Center | Top AIA Award Winners Named | Harriet Pattison wins 2006 AIA NY Chapter Arnold W. Brunner Grant

SIGHTED

ON VIEW

At the Center for Architecture: Field Experiments in art-architecture-landscape: Hombroich spaceplacelab | 2005 AIA New York Chapter Design Awards | Two Columbus Circle (plus): Museum of Arts & Design and Allied Works Architecture | Cultural Exchange in Mentoring: Across Generations and Borders

Elsewhere: Marko Lulic: Modernity in YU | John Yang's Over The Door: Stone Faces From A Disquieting Age | In-Depth: The House of Spiritual Retreat by Emilio Ambasz

eCALENDAR
Click the above link to go to to eCalendar on the Web.

NEW DEADLINES

DEADLINES

NAMES IN THE NEWS

CLASSIFIEDS

REPORTS FROM THE FIELD

Bringing Cultures Together with Public Policy from New York to New Orleans—AIA NY Inaugural
by Jessica Sheridan, Assoc. AIA

At the December Inaugural: 2005 President Chin dons "Architecture: Bringing Cultures Together" and 2006 President Strauss sports "Architecture as Public Policy."
Kristen Richards

The evening began with Susan Chin, FAIA, outgoing President of the AIA NY Chapter, discussing the 2005 theme, Architecture: Bringing Cultures Together. With membership consistently rising, many new programs developing, and advocacy for architectural professionals growing, the Chapter has continued to evolve, creating a truly cosmopolitan chapter fitting to the scale of New York City.

As a result of the growth and success of this past year, 2006 Chapter President Mark Strauss, FAIA, AICP, flaunted that "AIA New York No Longer Blows," a reference to a headline on the architecture blog, Tropolism. Reflecting on the broad reach of the Chapter, even into the realm of the Internet, Strauss announced the 2006 theme: Architecture as Public Policy. He called on all architectural professionals, not just the urban designers and planners, to engage the public arena by getting more involved at the Center for Architecture. Providing upcoming programs, the Center acts as a conduit for design professionals to understand political processes and gives them tools to promote and administer design excellence throughout the city.

Pertinent to both 2005 and 2006 themes, and launching the 2006 Architecture as Public Policy program, keynote speaker Jonathan Barnett, FAIA, eloquently discussed his efforts in the reconstruction of New Orleans. Having visited New Orleans just days before, Barnett presented a somber and sobering perspective of the developments that have occurred (or are not occurring) more than three months after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.

Continues…

New Practices Roundtable: Technology Hits & Misses
by Kristen Richards

Techology: Hit or Miss New Practices Roundtable (l-r): Winka Dubbeldam; Campbell Hyers; Sean Flaherty; Paul Seletsky, Assoc. AIA; and Kevin Kennon, AIA.
Kristen Richards

Can the right use of technology give the small practice a competitive edge? That was the kick-off question posed by moderator Kevin Kennon, AIA, at the third New Practices Roundtable, "Technology: Hit or Miss" on December 7 at the Center for Architecture. His take was "yes—small offices are closer to the ground and can be more agile." The panelists then each presented their "hit or miss" points when it comes to technology. A sampling:

Paul Seletsky, Assoc. AIA, chair of the AIA NY Chapter Technology Committee and digital design director at SOM, led off with: "I'm bringing good news: these are the best of times to start a new firm."
Hits: Don't own anything • Outsource technology and focus on design • Use BIM [Building Information Technology]
Misses: CAD • Bloated IT department • 3-year service contracts

Sean Flaherty, CEO of Nemetschek North America, called architects "the biggest space hogs."
Hits: Treat information back-up with as much importance as billing • Use software that make your design process more efficient and accurate
Misses: Treating website design as IT investment instead of marketing cost • Drawing buildings with lines and polygons

Continues…

"There Is No Hope"—Zero Culture at Ground Zero
by Jessica Sheridan, Assoc. AIA

View of Ground Zero from the 49th floor at 7WTC.
Kristen Richards

Pessimism was the undertone at the panel discussion, "Zero Culture: What's Happening to the Arts at Ground Zero?" at The New School on December 12. Moderator Paul Goldberger, Dean of Parsons The New School for Design, posed questions about the need, and hope, for a cultural institution at Ground Zero in the face of the whirlpool of confusion underlying the development of the site. Each panelist addressed the issue from varying angles, but the overriding agreement throughout the evening was that there is little, if any, hope as long as politicians are involved.

According to Robert Yaro, President of the Regional Plan Association, a cultural center at Ground Zero has the potential to mediate and animate the current program—a mall with a park. The value of culture lies in the variety of emotional responses that it can pull from its participants: memory, creativity, contemplation, education, and controversy. The problem is that politicians have made it impossible for cultural institutions to present their ideas and demonstrate how these responses can be positive. A rational conversation has yet to occur among government officials, the public, and cultural institutions.

Mike Wallace, Director of the Gotham Center for New York City History, in stating that energy and emotions should drive the planning for Ground Zero, argued that creating a place void of controversy on such a loaded site is innately contradictory. Freedom is an expression of multiple opinions, and that notion should not be smothered. Politicians need to move beyond their own agendas and begin to look at 9/11 as an event with historic significance. The site should enable people to understand the present through a lens, and be able to funnel their emotions through the experience of culture.

Continues…

A New Plan For Ground Zero
by Michael Sorkin

Michael Sorkin

With Mayor Bloomberg's forceful post-election intervention, there's a new chance to focus the drifting project for Ground Zero into something coherent and worthy. This couldn't be timelier: it has become clear in recent months that there is no longer a plan for the site. Whatever the merits of the original scheme, endless contention and compromise have largely destroyed any consolidating vision. Modification of the Freedom Tower, elimination of the Freedom Center, detailed development of the memorial and transit center, shifting positions on the alignment (and tunneling) of West Street, Port Authority's proposal for a shopping mall on Church Street, dim prospects for further office development on the site, renewed talk of including housing, final cutting of a deal with Goldman-Sachs, Governor Pataki's dithering, and Larry Silverstein's blithe intransigence, have combined to winnow the plan to a shifting patchwork of incoherence.

It is urgent to revisit the design of Ground Zero as a whole, to recover the gravity, generosity, and utility that this place demands. The memorial must be the driver and its aura should govern. Constrained by a block scheme that chokes it with cultural facilities, shopping mall, office towers, and roads, highway, and other infrastructure, the memorial needs room to breathe. The morphology of its influence should visibly impact its surroundings, a stronger force than roadway alignments or real estate values. Now is the time to renew focus: the Mayor's authority can bring contending interests together by widening the purview of the plan to produce an encompassing scheme that transcends the cobbled-together camel of a scheme that's now on the table.

Continues…

Fostering a Cross-Disciplinary Environment—Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative
by Stuart Klawanf

Clifford Pearson in dialogue with architect Sahel Al-Hiyari
Annie Kurtin

"One of our principal goals at the Center for Architecture is to bring cultures together," says Susan Chin, FAIA, President of the AIA New York Chapter. "Another goal is to encourage education at all levels." In an event that furthered both of these aims, the Center played host on Saturday, December 3, to a public conversation between the Amman-based architect Sahel Al-Hiyari and Clifford A. Pearson, Deputy Editor of Architectural Record, on the subject of architectural mentoring in today's cross-cultural, cross-disciplinary world.

Al-Hiyari was nominated in 2002 to participate in a new international program, the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative, and subsequently was chosen to spend a year in close contact with Álvaro Siza, the Pritzker Prize-winning Portuguese master architect. At the December 3 event, Al-Hiyari spoke with Pearson about his experience of working with Siza and signed copies of a recently published monograph, Projects, published by the Center for the Study of the Built Environment in Amman, Jordan.

Continues…

Finnish Nature in New Jewish Museum
by Katri-Liisa Pulkkinen, Finnish architect M.Sc. and researcher

Lahdelma & Mahlamäki Architects/Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw

Finnish architects Ilmari Lahdelma and Rainer Mahlamäki, of Helsinki-based Architects Lahdelma & Mahlamäki, have a long history of collecting the first prizes in domestic architectural competitions. Now, they are starting to gain international attention after winning the competition for the Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw this past June. The winning team presented their design at the Center for Architecture on December 1.

Panelist Kenneth Frampton, who was a member of the competition jury, said that the jury had speculated the design was by young Spanish architects. According to Frampton, the problem with many other competition entries, including Daniel Libeskind's proposal, was that they exceeded the height limitations or other parameters of the site given in the competition guidelines.

The characterizing feature of the Lahdelma & Mahlamäki design is the dramatic limestone-covered undulating passageway through the building; the museum itself is a glass-covered simple box. The opening, the purpose of which is to prepare visitors for the silence, leads from the entrance to the monument for the victims of the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Mahlamäki remarked that the inspirational source, as it is for many Finnish architects, is nature—its spaces, forms, light.

Continues…

Eastward Bound: "The Scene in China"
by Linda Crites, Hillier Architecture

(l-r): Daniela Fabricius, Clifford Pearson, Andrew Yang
Annie Kurtin

The Center for Architecture drew a hundred people on December 3 to "Architecture Now: The Scene in China," the first in a series of dialogues on Asia hosted by AIA New York. Featuring presentations by journalists and architects, the afternoon held discussions on up-and-coming Chinese architects, collaboration in China, and personal experiences working abroad.

The journalists' presentations touched on two topics about architecture in China. Many of the emerging Chinese architects have a unique relationship with the United States. Some are architects that were trained stateside and have since returned to work in China. Others, like Yung Ho Chang, who was recently appointed Chair of the School of Architecture at MIT, have balanced their Chinese practice and their work in the U.S. China is a "brain trust and source of talent that the U.S. is tapping into," said Clifford Pearson, senior editor at Architectural Record and in charge of the magazine's new China edition.

Additionally, the patronage of Chinese architecture has changed in recent years. Some of these young architects have broken out on their own, thanks to relaxed licensing regulations. Others have gained the patronage of Chinese real estate developers. "SOHO China is one of the most shining examples of how developers have embraced architecture," said Andrew Yang, a freelance journalist who writes for the New York Times and The Architect's Newspaper. Despite the abundance of new architecture projects in China, some report cynicism that the architecture is mostly for show, Yang said.

Continues…

Winning Work—2005 AIA NY Chapter Interior Architecture and Projects Awards
by Linda G. Miller

The 2005 AIA NY Chapter Design Awards are divided into three categories: Architecture, Interior Architecture, and Projects. The Design Awards Committee chaired by Peter Budeiri, AIA, sponsored presentations and symposia for the latter two categories at the Center for Architecture, giving the public the opportunity to hear about the winning designs directly from the architects who created them.

Continues…

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IN THE NEWS

Obituary: James Ingo Freed, FAIA
James Ingo Freed, FAIA, architect and partner of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects, passed away Thursday, December 15 at his home in Gramercy Park due to complications of Parkinson's disease. He was 75.

Since joining the office of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners in 1956, Freed has made considerable contributions to the architectural community including the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in Manhattan, and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC. He has also been the recipient of many awards and honors; most notably, Freed was awarded a Presidential Citation for Lifetime Achievement presented by John W. Douglass, president of the American Institute of Architect in 1998.

For more articles in memory of James Ingo Freed:
Chicago Tribune
New York Times
San Francisco Chronicle
Washington Post

Gruzen Samton: El Museo del Barrio Expansion Breaks Ground

Courtesy of Gruzen Samton New York's premier Latino and Latin American cultural institution, El Museo del Barrio, celebrated the museum's upcoming extensive interior and exterior renovations by Gruzen Samton. "As an incomparable museum that represents the beauty and power of Latin American culture in the Western Hemisphere, El Museo's new, bold presence will now resolutely anchor the northern end of Fifth Avenue's world class museums in the heart of Harlem," said Jordan Gruzen, FAIA, partner-in-charge of the project. The new design, which received an award for Excellence in Design by the Art Commission of the City of New York, will include a transparent glass façade, a renovated courtyard, improved lobby space and signage, and an expanded museum shop, among others. The $15 million project is slated to be completed in the fall of 2007.

Beyer Blinder Belle Takes Center Stage at Harlem's Famed Apollo Theater

Christopher Cowan, Beyer Blinder Belle It was show time at the Apollo on December 15 when officials and the public were able to view Beyer Blinder Belle's handiwork in the completion of the first phase of the theater's renovation. The project includes the reconstruction of the theater's hallmark marquee and projecting blade sign, the restoration and replication of the original ornamental terracotta façade, installation of a new roof, and replacement of inappropriate ground-floor finishes. Design of new elements, including a new storefront, entrance doors, and box office facilities, was based on the appearance of the Apollo in the 1940s—the era chosen as most representative of the theater's impact on local, national, and international culture. An integral part of the architectural work involved the introduction of new signage and graphic technologies, replacing manually changed sign panels with modern, electronic LED signage at the marquee, and an introduction of built-in flat display screens at the entrance and vestibule. The LED panels, which have been approved by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission and New York State Historic Preservation Office, simulate the appearance of the Apollo's original sign panels and letters. Commissioned by the Apollo Theater Foundation, Inc. in 2001, Beyer Blinder Belle has been leading the architectural team and will continue to work on the restoration of the theater's interior from the lobby to the stage to the back of the house.

Lee H. Skolnick Architecture + Design Partnership: Aileron Center for Entrepreneurial Education, Ohio

Lee H. Skolnick Architecture + Design Partnership After 10 years in various locations, the Aileron Center for Entrepreneurial Education, which offers management skills training to entrepreneurs and non-profit leaders, will have a permanent home near Dayton, Ohio, designed by Lee H. Skolnick Architecture + Design. Located on a 114-acre parcel that includes a waterfall, pond, and acres of forests, the $30 million, 60,000-square-foot facility will incorporate an aerodynamic repeating roofline reflecting an aileron—the mechanical part of an airplane wing that guides an aircraft. The facility is slated to open in late 2007.

Steven Holl Architects Wins Denver Justice Center Courthouse
On December 15, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper announced the winners of the international competition to design the city's $378 million Justice Center. Steven Holl Architects, teamed with Denver-based Klipp Architecture, won the courthouse, and Washington, DC-based Hartman-Cox Architects/OZ Architecture was selected to design the detention facility. Both teams will work with NYC-based Ricci Greene Associates. The firms were chosen by a 15-member jury following a competitive RFQ/RFP process that included interviews with the jury and public presentations. Other NYC firms in the running included Robert A.M. Stern Architects, Richard Meier & Partners, and TEN Arquitectos.

Davis Brody Bond Goes Back to the Future: New York Public Library Map Division Restoration
The New York Public Library's newly-renovated Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal Map Division re-opened to the public on December 15—the latest in a series of restorations at the Carrere and Hastings landmark by Davis Brody Bond. The 7,000-square-foot room has been restored to its original 1911 Beaux-Arts grandeur with brilliant gold accents, rich carved wood, and marble. The new map room provides the public with state-of-the-art technology for advanced geographic research and offers expanded capacity for the division's collection of almost 420,000 maps and atlases.

It's Official: Norman Foster will Leave His Imprint on the Landscape of Ground Zero
The Silverstein Organization has commissioned Norman Foster of London-based Foster and Partners to design the third tower on the site of the World Trade Center. Foster's 65-story tower, to be known as 200 Greenwich Street, will include 2.4 million square feet of office space and approximately 130,000 square feet of retail space at street level and underground concourse linking to the PATH transportation hub. The design process will begin in 2006, steel is expected to rise in 2009, and it is anticipated the building will be ready for occupancy in 2011. Previously, the Silverstein Organization announced that Jean Nouvel and Fumihiko Maki would also design towers for the site, thus fulfilling Daniel Libeskind's master plan.

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AROUND THE AIA + THE CENTER FOR ARCHITECTURE

U.S. and European Architects Sign Mutual Recognition Agreement on Professional Qualifications
At the ACE General Assembly, held in Luxembourg on November 18–19, representatives of the Architects' Council of Europe (ACE), the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB), and The American Institute of Architects (AIA) signed an agreement for mutual recognition of professional qualifications between architects of the European Union (EU) and the United States. The signing of the agreement marks the culmination of a number of years of negotiations between the professional and regulatory bodies, first begun under trade talks in the context of the Transatlantic Economic Partnership (TEP). It is the first mutual recognition agreement of professional credentials to be signed between representatives from the EU and the U.S.. It is expected that the agreement will become a model on which agreements for other professions and service sectors will be based in coming years.

Capitol Capstones
by Rick Bell, FAIA, Executive Director

David Crawford, Chris McEntee & Elizabeth Mitchell
Rick Bell

Washington, DC, was agog with celebrations of transition—electoral and appointive—as the 2006 presidency of Kate Schewennsen, FAIA, was feted on December 9 at Daniel Burnham's Union Station, a stone's throw from the Capitol. Among the AIA New York Chapter members seen at the festivities were national board members George Miller, FAIA, Leevi Kiil, FAIA, and Jeremy Edmunds, Assoc. AIA, along with Barbara Nadel, FAIA. Kate will be the second woman—Susan Maxman, FAIA, of Philadelphia was the ceiling breaker—to head the AIA. Her dinner remarks were sharp and cogent, talking to the need for diversity and transformation. With a background in academia it is clear she can communicate collective aspirations and inspire even those of us in the back rows.

Ascending to the role of Executive Vice President/Chief Executive Officer, February 1, is Christine McEntee, whose qualifications are described in an excellent piece in the 12/9/05 issue of AIArchitect. Chris was introduced at the inaugural dinner, and also met privately with CACE officers (Council of Architectural Component Executives—the staff leadership organization) to ask about local concerns. One of her first initiatives will be to foster the spirit of "One AIA" by having key national staff spend more time on the road to see what is happening at AIA chapters. She was presented with a newly-minted AIA New York "Architecture as Public Policy" cap and advice from Component leaders including 2005 CACE President Elizabeth Mitchell (AIA Utah), and 2006 CACE President David Crawford (AIA North Carolina).

Exploring the Experimental @ the Center

Student Day @ the CFA. Imagining with Elizabeth Grajales.
Amy Hitchcoff
Family Day @ the CFA. Students observing the Insel Hombroich exhibition.
Amy Hitchcoff Through both Student Days and a Family Day, the Center for Architecture Foundation has invited students to explore Field Experiments in Art-Architecture-Landscape: Hombroich Spacelab exhibit at the Center for Architecture. Landscape designer and artist, Elizabeth Grajales, joined Center for Architecture Foundation staff to help students begin to imagine their own concepts of utopia. Students were taken on an interactive tour through the exhibit and asked to imagine a creative intervention for an open space in New York City. With solutions ranging from creating domes so that open spaces were more accessible year-round to the addition of water to creating an underground atrium of glowing amoeba and algae to the use of boulders and walking trails, the results were unexpected, creative and refreshing. Students from the Bronx High School for the Visual Arts will be participating on the 22nd for the last student day before the new year. For more information or to participate in Youth Programs @the Center call 212.358.6136 or email ahitchcoff@nyfarchitecture.org. Field Experiments in Art-Architecture-Landscape: Hombroich Spacelab will be exhibited at the Center for Architecture through December 31, 2005.

Top AIA Award Winners Named
2006 AIA Gold Medal has been awarded to Albuquerque-based Antoine Predock, FAIA. The 2006 Architecture Firm Award goes to Moore Ruble Yudell Architects & Planners.

The awards will be presented at the American Architectural Foundation Accent on Architecture Gala, February 10, 2006, at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C.

AIA Diversity Committee Chair and Boston Architectural Center President and CEO Theodore Landsmark, Assoc. AIA, has been named the 2006 recipient of the Whitney M. Young Jr. Award, given to an individual who exemplifies the profession's responsibility toward current social issues.

Architect and professor William G. McMinn, FAIA, is the 2006 recipient of the AIA/ACSA Topaz Medallion for Excellence in Architectural Education.

James D. Tittle, FAIA, has been elected to receive the 2006 Edward C. Kemper Award for his service to the AIA.

Landsmark, McMinn, and Tittle will be presented their awards at the AIA National Convention in Los Angeles in June.

Thorncrown Chapel in Eureka Springs, AK, designed by the late E. Fay Jones, has won the 2006 AIA Twenty-five Year Award.

Click on each name for AIArchitect's detailed reports about each of the award winners.

Harriet Pattison wins 2006 AIA NY Chapter Arnold W. Brunner Grant
The AIA New York Chapter announced that the 2006 Arnold W. Brunner Grant has been awarded to Harriet Pattison for her project titled "Remnants of a Better World." The grant is awarded annually for advanced study in any area of architectural investigation that contributes to the knowledge, teaching, or practice of the art and science of architecture.

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SIGHTED

New Yorkers always clamor for more bike racks and public toilets…the Center for Architecture delivers
Kristen Richards

Skyline romance on the 49th floor during the Architect's Newspaper's 2nd Anniversary party atop 7WTC
Kristen Richards

IBEX Construction Holiday Party @ the Center: AIANY President Mark Strauss, FAIA, conferring an AIA cap on IBEX Construction President Andy Frankl, as Michael Doyle, AIA, laughs on
Kristen Richards

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NEW DEADLINES

Deadline January 6: Return of the Master-Disaster Architect Duel
The LVHRD Foundation is now seeking submissions for the 2nd "Master-Disaster Architecture Duel." The "design battle," scheduled for late February, is between two architects and their assistants on stage in front of a live audience. The architects selected will be provided with a brief for a building, materials, and tools, and will have a limited amount of time to build a structure according to set guidelines. When the clock stops, the competing architects will present their work to a panel of judges who will choose the best design. Questions? Ask last year's competitors—Matthew Johnson of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, and Jason Carlow of Smith-Miller + Hawkinson Architects—or get the official word from Chantal Strauss of the LVHRD Foundation at chantal.strauss@lvhrd.com. For a peek at last year's competition, click the link.

Deadline January 16: Call for Ideas: Absolute City Centre Architectural Design Competition
Fernbrook Homes and Cityzen Development Group are sponsoring a limited architectural design competition for a 50+ story residential tower in the community of Absolute, located in Mississauga, Canada. Four to six shortlisted participants will be selected to compete in the second phase, and will receive a $15,000 honorarium. Five additional participants will receive an honorable mention, and 20 to 30 submissions will be presented at a series of public exhibits. The final winner will have the opportunity to design a "landmark" building and receive a design contract totaling $125,000. Click link for details.

Deadline January 16: The AIA Staten Island Architecture Design Awards 2006
Licensed architects and landscape architects practicing on Staten Island, or licensed architects whose projects were designed for or built on Staten Island, may enter the AIA Staten Island Architecture Design Awards. To obtain the entry guidelines and application form call the Awards Committee at 718.667.6340 or e-mail David L. Businelli, AIA, Chair, Design Awards Committee at info@aiasiny.org.

Deadline January 20: Architecture for Humanity's DESIGN[ER]: Earthquake Resistant Housing Ideas for a Manual for Rebuilding in Kashmir
In addition to killing and maiming thousands of people, the earthquake that rocked the region near Kashmir left an estimated 3.3 million people homeless. With winter bearing down on those displaced, the situation has become even more desperate. The overwhelming need for transitional and long-term shelter that is earthquake resistant prompted Architecture for Humanity to launch DESIGN[ER], a call for ideas for pictorial diagrams to be included in a manual for rebuilding to help communities. Click link for details.

Registration Deadline January 27: 2005/2006 Sixth Edition Dedalo Minosse Prize
Announcing the sixth edition Dedalo Minosse Prize, promoted by the Associazione Liberi Architetti (ALA), Assoarchitetti, and the international architectural review (l'ARCA), together with the sponsor Caoduro Lucernari. The competition's strength is in its peculiarity of being targeted at the client rather than the architect. Registration is free and open to both private and public clients worldwide. The commissioned works must have been designed by a professional architect or building engineer and been effectively completed in the last five years. Click link for more details.

Deadline January 31: AIA/COTE 2006 Top Ten Green Projects
The AIA Committee on the Environment (COTE) invites submissions to its Top Ten Green Projects program. Projects may be large or small, new construction or renovations, and of any project type completed after 1996 located anywhere in the world, but must be designed by an architect licensed in the U.S. Click link for details.

Registration Deadline February 10: Light of Tomorrow International VELUX Award 2006 for Architecture Students
In 2004, the VELUX Company, in collaboration with the European Association for Architectural Education (EAAE) and the International Union of Architects (UIA), created a biennial international award open to students of architecture worldwide. The 2006 theme, "Light of Tomorrow," focuses on the role daylight plays in contemporary architectural design. The award is open to any student or team of students registered during 2005-2006 in a school of architecture any where in the world. Projects submitted must be prepared during the study year of 2004-2005 or 2005-2006. Submissions are due May 5; a cash award will be presented to the top two winning student or team. Click link for details.

Registration Deadline February 22: Illusion by Light IESNY Student Design Competition 2006
The New York Section of the Illuminating Engineering Society (IESNY) Student Design Competition 2006, "Illusion by Light," gives students the opportunity to explore light as an art form, demonstrate light as a stimulus, and prove that light is a valuable medium. The IESNY invites all New York City design students to construct a three-dimensional study on how light can reveal, create, and transform the unseen. Any material may be used as long as it includes an electric light source and can be transported in a taxi. First place winner will be awarded $3,000 plus airfare, accommodations, and registration fee to attend the Fall 2006 European Lighting Designers Association Workshop in Sweden. Submissions are due March 8. Click link for details.

Registration Deadline February 28: Designboom's "Shelter in a Cart"
Designboom is calling for design professionals, students, and design-enthusiasts to enter Shelter in a Cart, an international competition to design a cart that can provide shelter and storage for the homeless. By holding a design competition such as this, Designboom believes attention will be drawn to the issue of homelessness and our environment. Submissions are due March 10. Click link for details.

Deadline March 1: Nominations for the CoreNet Global Sustainable Leadership Awards
CoreNet Global, in partnership with the International Interior Design Association (IIDA), the AIA Committee on the Environment, and the AIA Committee on Interior Architecture, is accepting entries for the CoreNet Global Sustainable Leadership Awards. The awards recognize those who lead by example, making sustainable design and development a cornerstone of their business practices. Awards are given to organizations in four categories: architecture and interior design; government or non-profit (NGO); for-profit companies under $5 billion dollars in sales; and for-profit multinational companies over $5 billion in sales. Click link for details.

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DEADLINES

Oculus 2006 Editorial Calendar
Ideas/Submissions Deadlines (projects can be anywhere, but architects must be New York-based). Contact: Kristen Richards kristen@archnewsnow.com.
December 20: Spring: Beyond Manhattan
March 20: Summer: Architecture as Public Policy
June 20: Fall: Infrastructure New York
September 20: Winter: The Business of Practice

January 6, 2006: Return of the Master-Disaster Architect Duel

January 13, 2006: Call for Nominations: 2006 Barrier-Free America Award (.pdf)

January 14, 2006: IESNY 2006 Lumen Awards

January 16, 2006: Absolute City Centre Design Competition

January 16, 2006: AIA Staten Island Chapter Architecture Design Awards 2006; e-mail: info@aiasiny.org

January 16, 2006: Nominations for National Trust's 2006 America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places

January 17, 2006: NYCDEP/EPA 2nd NYC Green Building Competition

January 20, 2006: Architecture for Humanity DESIGN[ER] Competition

January 20, 2006 (registration): 2006 Burnham Prize: Learning from North Lawndale: Defining the Urban Neighborhood in the 21st Century

January 27, 2006: Dedalo Minosse Prize

January 30, 2006: Ceramic Tiles of Italy Design Competition 2006

January 31, 2006: AIA/COTE 2006 Top Ten Green Projects

January 31, 2006: Congress for the New Urbanism 2006 Charter Awards

February 10, 2006 (registration): Light of Tomorrow International VELUX Award 2006 for Students of Architecture

February 10, 2006 (registration): ASLA Professional Awards; May 19, 2006: ASLA Student Awards

February 22, 2006 (registration): Illusion by Light IESNY Student Design Competition 2006

February 28, 2006 (registration): Designboom's Shelter in a Cart Design Competition

March 1, 2006: CoreNet Global Sustainable Leadership Awards

March 1, 2006: James Stirling Memorial Lecture on the City

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NAMES IN THE NEWS

Rick Bell, FAIA, and Charles McKinney, Chief of Design for the NYC Dept. of Parks & Recreation, contemplate the landscape of architecture
Courtesy of Mark Strauss The NY Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLANY) announced the 2005 Landscape Design Awards winners during the Chapter's holiday party at the Center for Architecture on December 14. Honor Awards: EDAW (Mohegan Sun Casino and Resort), and Mark K. Morrison & Associates (Southpoint Park). Merit Awards: EDAW (Idlewild Park Experimental Research & Education Center); Mathews Nielsen Landscape Architects (72nd Street Station Plazas); Araiys Design, Timothy A. Rumph, ASLA, Landscape Architect (Demchak Residence); and Edmund Hollander Landscape Architect Design (A Farm, Re-interpreted).

Mark Maljanian, AIA, has joined the New York office of Butler Rogers Baskett as Design Studio Leader of the Architecture Studio… Five finalists for the redesign of Rutgers College Avenue Campus in New Brunswick, NJ, include: Beyer Blinder Belle Architects & Planners/Ateliers Jean Novel; Eisenman Architects; Morphosis; Antoine Predock Architect; and TEN Arquitectos… John Reid, AIA, has joined the New York office of HOK Advance Strategies, and will lead facility planning and architectural programming projects for corporate, public, and institutional clients in the Northeast region… FXFOWLE Architects is among the Scientific American 50 featured in the December issue, citing Conde Nast Building at 4 Times Square and the Helena, a residential tower on the Upper West Side of Manhattan… Lewis.Tsurumaki.Lewis (LTL) Architects received an AR (Architecture Review ) Award for Emerging Architecture 2005 (U.K.), with an Honorable Mention for the Tides Restaurant… Century City, CA-based architectural, interior, and industrial design firm Felderman Keatinge + Associates has formed a partnership with interior designer Kenneth Brian Walker and opened Felderman Keatinge Walker + Associates in New York…

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ON VIEW

At the Center for Architecture, 536 LaGuardia Place:

Related Event Saturday, January 14, 11:00am–3:00pm Center for Architecture Foundation Family Day: To Preserve or Not to Preserve Exhibition tour and hands-on activity. Recommended for ages 6–12.

October 6–February 18, 2006 Two Columbus Circle (plus): Museum of Arts & Design and Allied Works Architecture Gallery: Street Gallery The Museum of Arts & Design presents a preview of its new premises at Two Columbus Circle. Allied Works Architecture is the architect for this transformation and renewal of the long-derelict building into a state-of-the-art, light-filled museum to house MAD's expanding collections and programs. Sponsored by: Museum of Arts & Design

Elsewhere:

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eCALENDAR
eCalendar now includes the information that used to be found in eOculus' Around the Center, Around the AIA, and Around Town sections. Click the above link to go to to eCalendar on the Web.

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CLASSIFIEDS

ADVERTISE IN THE eOCULUS CLASSIFIEDS!
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Would you like to get your message out to the architecture community? Spotlight your firm, product, or event as a marquee sponsor of eOCULUS, the electronic newsletter of the AIA New York Chapter. Sponsors receive a banner ad prominently placed above the table of contents. Your message will reach over 5,000 architects and decision-makers in the building industry via e-mail every two weeks (and countless others who access the newsletter directly from the AIA New York web site). For more information about sponsorship, contact Dan Hillman: dhillman@aiany.org or 212.358.6114.

Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Partnership (ZGF), an award-winning architectural, planning, and interior design firm, is opening an office in New York City and is seeking an entrepreneurial Marketing Director for this exciting venture. The Marketing Director will be responsible for directing marketing activities of the New York office, coordinating local public relations activities, and contributing to the firm's awareness of its markets locally, regionally, and nationally. Working in conjunction with New York-based design and management leadership, and a national marketing team, the selected individual will identify, and develop relationships with, prospective clients, thereby extending partners' activities in this area. At least 5-7 years of applicable experience is required, along with excellent communication and organizational skills, attention to detail, and ability to work on multiple tasks and deadlines. Extensive experience with clients and consultants in New York and northeastern US is critical.

Please do not contact ZGF directly. Call or submit resume to: Sharlene Silverman, The Coxe Group, T 818.986.8898 ssilverman@coxegroup.com

Vollmer Associates LLP, a multi-disciplinary E/A design firm seeking:

• Job Captain: (New York City) 3-5 years construction document experience. Experience with rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of historic buildings preferred. Must either be recently licensed or nearly licensed.
• Project Manager: (New York City) RA with 10 years experience and excellent communication skills. Must be client focused and able to manage inter-disciplinary approach to design. Projects will include large scale, developer-related transit improvements. Familiarity with NFPA 130 and other transit regulations and guidelines a plus.
• Project Architect: (New Jersey) Degree and minimum 3 years private and public sector experience required. Must have design development experience, interaction with clients, contractors and consultants and proficiency in AutoCAD and Autodesk Architectural Desktop. RA preferred not required.

Send resume to Vollmer Associates LLP, 50 W 23rd St, NY, NY 10010 or e-mail cveltri@vollmer.com or fax 212 366-5629
EOE M/F/H/V

SENIOR PLANNER/LOWER MANHATTAN
Department of City Planning

The Senior Planner for Lower Manhattan will oversee the Department's role in the planning and revitalization of Lower Manhattan including the redevelopment of the World Trade Center Site. The Senior Planner will direct planning studies for Lower Manhattan, supervise a small team of urban designers and planners, work closely with the Director of City Planning and the Manhattan Office Director and Deputy Director, and coordinate with other city and public agencies.

A full position description is available at www.nyc.gov/planning/.

Marketing Coordinator/Director
Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design

Exciting opportunity for motivated marketing professional at award winning NYC based lighting design firm. The ideal candidate will work directly with Principals and be responsible for overseeing production and delivery of proposals, award entries and marketing materials.

Responsibilities include: Qualification writing, proposal writing, editing, preparing and issuing timely responses; update existing marketing materials including resumes and project descriptions; maintain project information in database (Access) and generate a variety of reports; oversee production and maintain inventory of marketing materials, including office stationary, business cards, promotional materials, mailings; prepare in-house presentations and set up and arrange outside presentations; proposal production, printing, collating, binding; track and maintain information on leads and proposals; assist with planning of photo shoots and negotiation of fees for stock photography; maintain contact list and organize and prepare office mailings including direct bulk mailings, holiday cards, and electronic mailings; maintain website.

To qualify you will have a Bachelor's degree in Marketing or Communications or the equivalence of education and experience with 2+ years experience working in a marketing environment, experience at a design firm a plus. Strong organizational skills. Excellent verbal and written communication skills. Excellent computer skills required using Microsoft Office Suite applications, including Power Point and Access Database, Knowledge of graphic print and website production (Dreamweaver and Flash) required. Excellent skills in Adobe products - Photoshop, InDesign etc.

Please reply to Stephen Bernstein at sbernstein@cbbld.com.

Project Architects wanted with a minimum of 5 years experience in laboratory planning and design. Responsibilities include preparing and reviewing design, construction documents and specifications, and coordinating work with engineers and consultants. Must be proficient in AutoCAD. Construction administration experience is also desired. Please send resumes and salary requirements to relam@davisbrody.com

IT Staff Position
Prestigious NYC design firm seeks a bright motivated individual to work in its Information Technology Department. The successful candidate should have good communications skills as well as a sound working knowledge of the following technology: Microsoft Office 2003, AutoCAD 2005, Microsoft Windows XP, basic networking and troubleshooting. The position is a full time position with a full array of benefits including a 401K plan. Salary is commensurate with experience.

Please send cover letter and resume to George Podolak at gpodolak@pcf-p.com.

AIA Contract Documents
The American Institute of Architects has Released Twelve New Contract Documents
New Documents Include a Design-Build Family, Six New Standard Forms of Architects' Services Documents, and a Request for Information (RFI) Form
For more information click here.

Paper Documents
The AIA New York Chapter is a full-service distributor of AIA Contract Documents, which are the most widely used standard form contracts in the building industry. These comprehensive contracts have been prepared by the AIA with the input of contractors, attorneys, architects, and engineers. Typically, industry professionals and home/property owners use these documents to support agreements relating to design and construction services. Anyone may purchase and use the AIA Contract Documents. AIA Members receive a 10% discount. For a full list and order form, see aiany.org/services/documentlist.pdf or call 212.358.6113 with your fax number.

Electronic Format Documents
The new AIA Contract Documents software. Completely redesigned and based on Microsoft Word, the new software is easier to use than Word itself. Enter project and document information once and reuse it automatically. E-mail documents as Word or PDF attachments. Print "clean copy" final documents with all changes captured in a special report. Go to http://www.aia.org/docssoftwaretraining for Contract Documents Software Training and
http://www.aia.org/docs_purchase to download the AIA Contract Documents software.

AIA New York Chapter's HOME page
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Bringing Cultures Together with Public Policy from New York to New Orleans, continued

While there have been several groups who have given input on the rebuilding, the most shocking news was that very little is actually being done. Barnett discussed the framework that he and his firm, Philadelphia-based Wallace Roberts & Todd, have been developing throughout their months of research. Because there has yet to be a comprehensive cost estimate assessment of New Orleans, priority must be given to evaluating the expense of redevelopment, not just from a reconstruction standpoint, but also from a civic, commercial, and educational perspective. Incorporating transit-oriented design and mapping a storm water management plan are two options to create a sound flood protection strategy. A proposal for addressing and involving those who have been displaced needs to be offered with the cooperation of FEMA. Buy-out assistance plans need to be presented to property owners to enable them to decide their own futures.

Although focus has tended to be inward due to the shellshock so many people felt after Hurricane Katrina, it is the job of planners, architects, and design professionals to address the big picture of urban renewal. Only through a collaborative effort where focus can be dispersed among the many aspects of redevelopment will there be success in New Orleans. In the spirit of professional responsibility to cultural diversity and public policy, Barnett called on other designers to get involved in the process. Otherwise the future of New Orleans—and the entire Gulf Coast—will greatly suffer.

The AIA Inaugural event was sponsored by Smart Office Solutions, Inc. and Teknion, LLC. The Center for Architecture is calling for ideas for the 2006 theme, Architecture as Public Policy. Please see the attached program and sponsorship guidelines for more information. Interested in sponsorship? Contact Pamela Puchalski: ppuchalski@aiany.org.

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New Practices Roundtable, continued

Campbell Hyers, Partner and Co-founder, Control Group
Hits: Hire vendors who know what you do • Outsource technologies that can be easily brought back in-house or lived without
Misses: Outsourcing to people you don't like or only for financial reasons • Trying to be firm's tech-guru AND design

Winka Dubbeldam of Archi-Tectonics mused, "Listening to all of this, we do everything wrong!" Her hits and misses took a very different track:
Wired: Analyze/Unwired: Normalize • Wired: Economize/Unwired: Jeopardize • Wired: Customize/Unwired: Standardize

During the Q&A, a question that sparked some sharp responses was: Are schools a barrier to learning technology? Seletsky said that schools were loathe to introduce CAD, and they "have to start teaching collaboration." Flaherty pointed out that "schools want to turn out people who are immediately hirable. BIM is an emerging technology. Practicing architects need to go to the schools and tell them it needs to be taught."

The Technology Roundtable was sponsored by The Architect's Newspaper; AIA New York Chapter; Vectorworks; Citibank; MG & Company; and Fountainhead Construction.

To review a PDF all of the panelists' hits and misses, click here.

The fourth and final New Practices Roundtable on March 16, 2006, will focus on Marketing and Business Development.

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"There Is No Hope," continued

Culture is a moral and philosophical mandate needed to stand the test of time at Ground Zero, according to Tom Bernstein, Co-founder and Chairman of the International Freedom Center. Creating a center that is educational is key to maintaining the needs of visitors in the future. With a country that was built on the idea of free speech, culture should not be stymied because of concern over whether or not it will offend visitors.

Thelma Golden, Director and Chief Curator at The Studio Museum in Harlem, argued that there are forced dichotomies pitting groups against each other at Ground Zero. Multiple viewpoints must be facilitated in a way that they can coexist, not create friction. Eventually, Ground Zero will develop into a place where not only tourists visit, but also a place where New Yorkers will come to work, go to school, live, and commute; it will become a part of the urban fabric. Cultural centers tend to represent uncertainty when first developed, but they become valid through time as people inhabit and use them. Real estate and commerce, conversely, represent immediate stability. Fault lies in the short-sightedness of the development plan, and therefore, there is little hope for the future of a cultural institution.

Most bluntly stated by the artist Hans Haacke was that there is no hope for a cultural institution at Ground Zero. He pointed out every memorial has a political element and controversy is inevitable. Free speech must be enforced, but this is impossible when the politicians involved in the planning process (specifically, Governor Pataki) use Ground Zero as an opportunity to appeal to American masses. Culture is not an ideology upon which everyone can agree.

In discussing how a cultural center can commemorate and renew Ground Zero, all of the panelists voiced frustration with government officials for trying to pinhole the meaning of culture. Politicians will never be able to separate the politics from culture, and therefore, will never be able to accept any proposals for a cultural center. Not even a Norman Rockwell Museum would hold up against the requirements that are being placed on this cultural center, as Robert Yaro debated.

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A New Plan For Ground Zero, continued

The proposal presented here is a sketch of such a plan and includes the following suggestions:

• Surround the memorial with a clear and encompassing figure that clarifies its central importance. Carry the spirit of the memorial landscaping across the site.
• Tunnel West Street from Liberty to Fulton to secure the memorial's western edge, reduce vehicular traffic around the site, and elide Battery Park City with lower Manhattan.
• Eliminate the shopping mall and proposed office towers three and four to create a great public gathering space along Church Street, a place for the exercise of free expression, for politics, protest, and civic celebration.
• Expand the importance of Fulton Street as a great river-to-river pedestrian crossing, and clarify the chain of events from the Fulton Hub to the transit center, the memorial, Freedom Tower, the galleria, and the Battery Park City ferry terminal.
• Place the performing arts center—or the memorial museum—in the base of tower two and reduce the bulk of the tower.
• Construct a residential tower to the south of the site between Greenwich and Church.
• Replace the Deutsche Bank building with a mixed-use tower.
• Eliminate Vesey Park opposite 7 WTC in favor of a residential tower with a cultural facility in its base.
• Demolish the wounded CUNY building and replace it with a tower with academic facilities in its lower floors, residences above.

The dithering has gone on long enough. It's time for the guardians of Ground Zero to act decisively, to put dignity and the public interest above parochialism and private gain, to genuinely plan. The world is waiting.

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Fostering a Cross-Disciplinary Environment, continued

The conversation took place in a gallery at the Center for Architecture installed with images of some of Al-Hiyari's projects. On view through December 30, they include renderings, plans and photos of a square, mastaba-like private residence, A-House, designed for an dramatic, mountain landscape in Yemen; an ingenious renovation project, Clinical Psychologist's Workspace, which transformed a small 1950s house in Amman into an extraordinary contemporary space, using a very low budget and "substandard" construction processes; and a high-rise residential project for Kuwait City, Sand Lofts Apartments—an entry for a major architectural competition, which Al-Hiyari won after discussing his design with Siza.

Pearson cites common themes in the work of the mentor and the protégé—for example, their sensitivity to the use of light in a hot environment. Despite the differences in culture between Portugal and Jordan, the two could naturally share such concerns. But it's also clear that the mentoring relationship crossed borders beyond the national and cultural.

The Culture Exchange in Mentoring: Across Generations and Borders Exhibition is sponsored by Rolex and the Center for Architecture.

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Finnish Nature in New Jewish Museum, continued

Michael Crosbie, Ph. D., RA, editor-in-chief of Faith and Form Journal and author of "Designing the World's Best Museums and Art Galleries," was interested in how Mahlamäki saw the museum as a spiritual space. For Mahlamäki, it was important that there not be obvious symbols and that the museum itself not be treated a sacred space; "Using obvious symbols puts architects on a sloping ground," he said. Religious or illustrative shapes are not used. Members of the panel mentioned the caves of the very early religions, the tearing apart of the Jewish community, as well as pulling it back together.

The exhibition spaces around the passageway are very flexible, and can easily adjust to host the exhibition already designed before the competition was held. The site is a vast park surrounded by residential buildings. The museum will not be specifically a Holocaust memorial, but will primarily present the centuries of Jewish history in Poland. Site work will begin in 2006, with completion estimated in 2008. According to Mahlamäki, all of the financing is not yet in place, but the project is moving along steadily.

Click on the Museum's website above to review project details. The program was sponsored by the Museum of the History of Polish Jews, the AIA NY Chapter, the Consulate General of Finland, and the Consulate General of the Republic of Poland.

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Eastward Bound, continued

Pearson asked the other journalists about the future of China. "The work coming out of China will be stronger," said Yang. "More attention is being paid to environmental issues and architecture's role," added Daniela Fabricius, editor of 32BNY.

In a question from the floor, AIA NY Chapter 2006 President Mark Strauss, FAIA, asked about the level of interaction with public authorities in China. "The process is beginning to change. If a government official supports the project it will move quickly," explained Pearson.

The presentations also focused on the new era of Chinese architecture and the ever-changing nature of foreign collaboration. When Calvin Tsao, AIA, of Tsao & McKown, began traveling to China to oversee I.M. Pei's projects in the 1980s, he learned that international standards don't always apply. In 1985, he oversaw the construction of a high-rise apartment building. Upon completion, the balconies were promptly enclosed and the façade adorned with decorations.

Jamie von Klemperer of Kohn Pederson Fox reported a more collaborative atmosphere while working on some of KPF's Chinese projects from the late 1990s to the present. One of their recent projects, the Financial and Information Technology Center in the Beijing Science and Technology Park, incorporates modern technologies through height and a less expensive curtainwall, but retains historical influences from the Forbidden City. "These projects are atypical and represent a very specific need for growth in China," said von Klemperer. "They are like exclamation points in the center of the city."

Testifying to the unpredictable nature of modern competitions, Li Hu of Steven Holl Architects recounted the story of a housing project in Nanjing the firm recently won. When they hadn't heard from the client for several months, Hu searched the Internet only to find the property up for land auction.

The Asia Dialogues were sponsored by arcXchange and the Center for Architecture and the AIA New York Chapter in partnership with Asia Society.

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Winning Work, continued

On November 14, Metropolis magazine editor-in-chief Susan S. Szenasy moderated the Interiors Honors panel of four firms and their winning projects. Mayine Yu, AIA, of Davis Brody Bond, presented the 3,500-square-foot Human Rights in China New York Headquarters located on the 33rd floor of the Empire State Building. Challenges included working in a landmarked building where nothing within two inches of the exterior could be changed, and creating a workable office in such a small space. The solution: movable thick walls on tracks and using storage furniture as architecture. Bartholomew Voorsanger, FAIA, spoke of how he turned a former liquor distributorship in New Jersey into a back office and warehouse with a "runway" as an entrance hall for clothing designer Elie Tahari. Working with Michael Van Valkenburgh, the architect turned two vaults into interior garden courts affording employees views of nature all year round. David S. Robins, an associate at Richard Meier & Partners, presented 66, a Chinese restaurant in Tribeca where it was important that there would be no bad table and where and employees created "theater" behind fish tanks and translucent glass. Paul Bentel, FAIA, Peter Bentel, AIA, and Carol Bentel, FAIA, talked about the restaurant in the new Museum of Modern Art, aptly called The Modern. The restaurant traverses two buildings and one of the challenges was how to weave the space together. Another was creating two separate entrances—one from the museum itself and the other from the street.

Architectural historian and Columbia University professor of Art History, Hillary Ballon served as moderator for the Projects Honor winners on November 29. The temporary "Canopy" that Eric Bunge, AIA, and Mimi Hoang of nARCHITECTS created out of 1,100 linear square feet of bamboo for the courtyard P.S. 1 in Queens is no longer standing, but the different outdoor "rooms" will be remembered by those who enjoyed the experience. The same could be said of Shigeru Ban's Nomadic Museum for the photography exhibition "Ashes and Snow" on Pier 54, which was presented by Dean Maltz, the associate architect on the project. The building, made of 160 shipping containers arranged in a checkerboard pattern, cardboard tubes, and triangular rafters is completely reusable and or recyclable (it's on its way to Santa Monica). Architect Joel Sanders and landscape architect Diana Balmori designed the Staten Island Olympic Equestrian Facility for the 2012 Olympics. The program included a temporary stadium, stables, practice areas, and "landscaping good for photo ops"—then the budget was cut by 75%. According Kenneth H. Drucker, AIA, of Helmuth, Obata + Kassabaum, the Harlem Hospital New Patient Pavilion will bring color and life back to Lennox Avenue with the discovery of WPA murals painted by African-American artists, now being restored. Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi, AIA, of Weiss/Manfredi spoke of the Barnard Nexus on the Barnard campus on West 119th Street. The team plans to tear down an existing 1963 "fortress-like" structure and replace it will a new glass-skinned building that will house a black box theater, coffee bar, art and architecture studios, and a gallery. The U.S. Census Bureau Headquarters in Suitland, Maryland is part of the General Services Administration's Design Excellence program. The 3-million-square-foot project is 75% completed. Anthony Fieldman, AIA, of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill discussed how the building will achieve a Silver LEED certification, including the use of concrete and green roofs, sunshading with a green tinted curtain wall and a wood veil, which also gives the feeling of being outside and part of the landscape. Scott Marble and Karen Fairbanks of Marble Fairbanks' project, "Expanded Alliances: Industry & Beyond," for the Department of Art History and Archeology at Columbia University proposed a new way to design and build via a digital fabrication lab; it became a summer project for architecture students.

For a complete listing of all the 2005 AIA New York Chapter Design Awards winners, see aiany.org/designawards/.

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© 2005 The American Institute of Architects New York Chapter.
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