Discovery Green / Hargreaves Associates
This project comes from one of today’s leading figures in landscape architecture. Hargreaves Associates have designed landscapes that accompany many of buildings we have previously featured. Their design philosophy centers on connection; the connection between culture and the environment, and between the land and its people. The Discovery Green design in Houston, Texas exemplifies this philosophy.
Project Statement:
The revitalization of America’s urban cores and swift increase in residential populations has intensified and diversified programmatic demands on urban parks. Discovery Green embraces this trend by overlaying an extremely high density of programming in creative ways that allow the park to perform as a living fabric of activities and experiences as diverse as Houston’s population. The twelve-acre park has transformed the perception and experience of downtown while seeding the revitalization of the surrounding urban district.
Architect: Hargreaves Associates, Inc.
Location: Houston, Texas, USA
Architects: Page Southerland Page
Artists: Doug Hollis, Margo Sawyer
Local Landscape Architects: Lauren Griffiths Associates
Fountains: Dan Euser Waterarchitecture
Photographs: Courtesy of Hargreaves Associates
Arthouse at the Jones Center / LTL Architects
Located in the heart of downtown Austin, this project is a renovation and expansion of an existing contemporary art space. LTL was commissioned to design 21,000 sqf of new program within the building envelope, including an entry lounge, a video/projects room, a large open gallery, multipurpose room, two artists’ studios, additional art preparation areas, and an roof deck.
Architect: Lewis Tsurumaki Lewis Architects (LTL Architects)
Location: Austin, Texas, USA
Project Area: 21,000 sqf
Project Year: 2010
Photographs: Michael Moran
FibroCITY / Perkins+Will
FibroCITY is a proposal by Perkins+Will that operates as a restorative catalyst for communities that have been segregated by 20th century superhighways and the environment built around the car. FibroCITY is a template that restores urban voids with places for people, activities, and interactions, set in Houston, Texas, USA.
More on this project after the break.
CAMPstreet/CHRISpark / Poteet Architects
CAMPstreet/CHRISpark is the rehabilitation of a 1920’s factory and its grounds near downtown San Antonio, into 20 loft residences and an urban park. The 88,000 sqf structure was divided into lofts with indoor common area including exercise, community gallery and basement parking. Over 100 steel windows were added to the building’s refurbished façade. On the exterior, new concrete and steel porches and balconies are bounded by outdoor garden and courtyard spaces. The interior was treated as a backdrop for art in all media—the developer was a nationally known contemporary art collector.
Architect: Poteet Architects
Location: San Antonio, Texas, USA
Project Team: Jim Poteet, Brett Freeman
Structural Engineers: Beicker Engineering
MEP Engineer: HMG
Lighting: Lighting Consultants
Landscape: Kings Creek Landscaping
Contractor: Metropolitan Contracting
Artist: Teresita Fernandez
Collaborator: Linda Pace
Project Area: building 88,000 sqf, site 0.8 acres
Photographs: Chris Cooper, Poteet Architects
Linda Pace Foundation Offices / Poteet Architects
This project is the rehabilitation of a derelict auto body shop into offices for a contemporary art foundation. The modesty of the original structure and limited project budget stand in contrast to the international scope of the foundation’s mission and its board, as well as the architectural aspiration of the interior design. The design’s richness is the result of layering of program and form: the building serves as office and conferencing facilities for the foundation, gallery space for the changing display of the collection of the organization’s late founder, and a memorial to her life and influence.
Architect: Poteet Architects
Location: San Antonio, Texas, USA
Project Team: Jim Poteet, Brett Freeman, Isadora Sintes, Shane Valentine
Contractor: Rubiola Construction
Project Area: 2,500 sqf
Photographs: Chris Cooper
Collector’s Loft / Poteet Architects
Designed for an art collector/artist, this loft occupies the top two floors and roof of a 1920s factory in downtown San Antonio. Both old structure and new interventions are rendered in white, emphasizing the textural contrast of the existing masonry and board-formed concrete with the new walls, luminous epoxy floors and lacquered cabinetry.
Architect: Poteet Architects
Location: San Antonio, Texas, USA
Project Team: Jim Poteet, Brett Freeman
Contractor: Metropolitan Contracting
Project Area: 19,200 sqf
Photographs: Chris Cooper, Paul Bardagjy, Colleen Duffley, Poteet Architects
Capps Residence / Poteet Architects
The Capps house was constructed in 1896, designed by German Architect Albert Beckman, one of several distinctive masonry homes in King William that Beckman was responsible for. Though continuously occupied since its construction, the property was suffering from a good deal of deferred maintenance when taken over by new owners Travis Capps and Lee Anthony. The wrap- around porch was rotted and sagging and the large lawn and riverfront were overgrown. Capps engaged Poteet Architects to tailor the house to his needs, without sacrificing the historic character its prominent site demanded. Work began first on the carriage house, which was to be the Owner’s home during the rehabilitation. The carriage house now contains a living space with a small –and very orange—kitchen on the lower level and bedroom and bath above. A small, highly stylish salon was installed in the brick pool house.
Architect: Poteet Architects
Location: San Antonio, Texas, USA
Project Team: Jim Poteet, Brett Freeman, Isadora Sintes, Shane Valentine
Contractor: Rubiola Construction
Project Area: 3,284 sqf
Photographs: Ryann Ford, Poteet Architects
Container Guest House / Poteet Architects
The Container Guest House is the first of several projects by Poteet Architects we will be featuring. As a national award-winning firm, Poteet Architects is best known for their sensitive adaptive reuse of existing buildings and a fresh, rigorous approach to modern interior design. This project originated from Poteet Architects’s client’s wish to experiment with shipping containers. She lives in a small warehouse on a former industrial site just south of downtown. The finished project serves as a guesthouse and is fitted with a shower/WC and a custom stainless sink. The large steel and glass lift/slide and end window wall open the interior to the surrounding landscape. The remainder of the interior is used as a garden shed.
Architect: Poteet Architects
Location: San Antonio, Texas, USA
Project Team: Jim Poteet, Brett Freeman, Isadora Sintes, Shane Valentine
Contractor: Poteet Architects
Project Area: 320 sqf
Project Year: 2010
Photographs: Chris Cooper
AD Classics: Kimbell Art Museum / Louis Kahn
Located in Fort Worth, Texas, the Kimbell Art Museum by Louis Kahn has become a mecca for all who are interested in modern architecture. The element of natural light is the main focus of the design, and creates elegant spaces that are perfectly suited for the art that it houses.
More on Louis Kahn and the Kimbell Art Museum after the break.
Gloria Marshall Elementary School / SHW Group
Architects: SHW Group
Location: Spring, TX, USA
Design Team: Mark Lam, AIA LEED AP; Tracy Eich, AIA LEED AP; Luis Ayala, intl. assoc. AIA LEED AP, Jody Henry, LEED AP; Eddie Blanco, AIA; Amanda Erb, IIDA LEED AP; Ananta Patel
Structural Engineer: SHW Group
MEP Engineer: CMTA Engineering
Civil Engineer: LJA Engineering & Surveying
Landscape Engineer: LJA Engineering & Surveying
Project area: 105,391 sq. ft.
Project year: 2010
Photographs: Luis Ayala
La Condesa / Michael Hsu Office of Architecture
The design of La Condesa is the unique collaboration of local designers, artists, and artisans to create a space inspired by the contemporary architecture of Mexico with a composition of contrasting textures, colors and levels of finish and craft.
More on La Condesa after the break.
Architect: Michael Hsu Office of Architecture
Location: 400A West 2nd Street, Austin, TX, USA
Project Team: Michael Hsu, Kevin Stewart, Maija Kreishman, Micah Land
Contributing Decorator: One Eleven Design
Landscape Design: D-Crain
Mural Design: Sodalitas Art Group
Project Area: 4,400 sqf
Project Year: 2009
Photographs: Paul Bardagjy
AIA Lecture Series: Frank Harmon
Frank Harmon, FAIA, principal of Frank Harmon Architects PA in Raleigh, will be the featured speaker for the AIA Lecture Series in San Antonio, Texas, on March 30, beginning 6 p.m. in the historic Pearl Studio conference center on Grayson Street.
Harmon is a multi-award-winning leader in modern, innovative, sustainable architecture, and frequently lectures on the importance of regionally appropriate architecture – which address the particulars of climate, topography, forms, colors and culture of a region — as a means of creating both environmentally friendly architecture and a sense of place.
Harmon’s lecture and all others in the series are free and open to the public. For more information on the entire series, visit www.aiasa.org.
Icenhauer’s / Michael Hsu Office of Architecture
Named for the business owners, Icenhauer’s is located in the up and coming Rainey Street bar district of Austin. The site originally contained a house built in 1893, of which the front two rooms complete with original wood interior siding were saved and restored as a part of this new cocktail lounge.
More on Icenhauer’s, including pictures and drawings, after the break.
Architect: Michael Hsu Office of Architecture
Location: 83 Rainey St Austin, TX, USA
Project Team: Michael Hsu, Maija Kreishman, Allison Burke
General Contractor: Franklin-Alan
Landscape Design: Jackie Hadler Design
Project Area: 2,775 sqf
Project Year: 2010
Photographs: Lars Frazer Photography
Wimberley House / Cunningham Architects
Designed by Cunningham Architects, the Wimberley House quietly sits among dense brush and native Oak and Juniper trees nestled on the edge of a bluff in the Texas hill country. Accessed via a winding half-mile driveway and a short walking trail from the garage, this 5,000 sqf residence provides a peaceful respite for its inhabitants.
Project description, images, and drawings after the break.
Architect: Cunningham Architects
Location: Wimberley, Texas, USA
Mechanical/Electrical/Plumbing Engineer: MEP Systems
General Contractor: Burnette Builders, Inc.
Landscape Architect: Hocker Design Group
Project Area: 5,000 sqf
Project Year: 2009
Photographs: Tre Dunham, Gisela Borghi, and Cunningham Architects
Uchiko / Michael Hsu Office of Architecture
Uchiko is the sister restaurant to one of Austin’s most respected restaurants, Uchi, which is operated by renowned chef Tyson Cole. The design evokes the atmosphere of a simple Japanese farmhouse with an emphasis on natural materials and evidence of craftsmanship.
Project description, images, and drawings after the break.
Architect: Michael Hsu Office of Architecture
Project Team: Michael Hsu, Jay Colombo, Maija Kreishman
Location: 4200 North Lamar, Austin, TX, USA
Contractor: Blue and Associates
Landscape Design: D-Crain
Contributing Decorator: One Eleven Design
Project Area: 4,995 sqf
Project Year: 2010
Photographs: Paul Bardagjy
‘Minimal Complexity’ at the TEX-FAB 2.0 and REPEAT Exhibition
Hosted at the Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture at the University of Houston, Vlad Tenu’s winning entry to REPEAT: digital fabrication competition, Minimal Complexity, was the highlight of the lively TEX-FAB 2.0 and REPEAT exhibition. The event included a distinguished group of speakers from the academic, professional and fabrication communities that took place from February 10th to the 13th. More images and exhibition highlights after the break.
Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts / Allied Works Architecture
Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts is a building that supports the production of young artists. Where the school excels in the academic preparation of its students, it aspires to forge rigorous, creative thinkers and makers in spaces that inspire ideas and provoke experimentation and production. The 200,000 sqf expansion to the Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, designed by Allied Works Architecture, includes areas for the core programs of music, dance, theater, and visual arts, as well as spaces for assembly and traditional academic instruction. The expansion is organized as simple loft spaces of concrete, brick and glass that rotate around and extend outward from an open-air central amphitheater, known to students as the ‘Green Room’. The program clusters are contained in distinct volumes that provide individual identity yet overlap adjacent disciplines in plan and section. Project description, images and drawings following the break.
Architects: Allied Works Architecture
Location: 2501 Flora St, Dallas, Texas, USA
Project Team: Brad Cloepfil (Principal), Chris Bixby (Project Lead), David Suttle (Project Architect)
Project Area: 202,000 sqf
Project Year: 2008
Photographs: Jeremy Bittermann and Vicky Sambunaris
The Bridge Homeless Assistance Center / Overland Partners
Architects: Overland Partners
Location: Dallas, Texas, USA
Project area: 75,000 sq. ft.
Project year: 2010
Photographs: Courtesy of Overland Partners
Schertz Public Library / Kell Muñoz Architects
Architects: Kell Muñoz Architects
Location: Schertz, Texas, USA
General contractor: O’Haver Contractors
MEP Engineer: DBR Engineering
Structural Engineer: Datum Engineers
Civil Engineer: Brioñes Consulting
Landscape Architect: Laffoon Associates
Project area: 30,600 sq. ft.
Project year: 2009
Photographs: Casey Dunn, Christopher Gutierrez
Edcouch-Elsa ISD Fine Arts Center / Kell Muñoz Architects
Architects: Kell Muñoz Architects
Location: Edcouch, Texas, USA
Conceptual design: Henry R. Muñoz III
Project architect: Ronald J. Biediger, AIA
Project designer: John H. Kell, FAIA
MEP engineer: Goetting & Associates
Structural engineer: Hinojosa Engineering
General contractor: Jamail Construction
Civil engineer: Noe Garza Engineers
Project area: 31,000 sq. ft.
Project year: 2007
Photographs: Chris Cooper Photography
