As reported earlier, Cornell has enlisted OMA for their new Architecture building. Well, now there is a scheme. Says Koolhaas: "The box is always an isolated thing. But here, we use the box as a connector. You could say it's a postmodern use of the box." Third architect is a charm. | nytimes
6 Comments
Farnsworth House anyone?
more thoughts my site.
i bet koolhaas won't claim otherwise. "conflate farnsworth & crown and keep it simple."
why not?
beautiful project. a lot of the angles addressed. it talks little bit like that if mies did the carpenter center at hardward(my own loose connection). also, seems like a lot of romance involved. full use of building in the front.
very nice selection of rendering photo.
rem is definetly the 'most' of them all. on target.
This thing is hilarious! Knowing full well Rem's attitude on Cornell before Mostafavi became Dean of the school... Rem gave Cornell exactly what Cornell wanted... a white glass box of a building on pilotis. Slab and Column on a grid. Essentially what Cornellians used to obsess about in the 80s and 90s.
The difference between what Hejduk or Meier would try to achieve and what Rem has done right here is that the building seemingly dissappears. The whole thing is quite fragile actually. Not monumental at all. The thing to be celebrated here is the possible life/program/events of the campus... of course, framed by the white box.
Rem did with the white box parti the way Holl failed to do in his overemphasis of it in Holl's winning scheme for Milstein.
could it be that the upper level grid column don’t fit with the lower one?
It will be interesting to see how all this unfolds. the scope project (even just in the physical real estate it covers) seems vast right now. perhaps practical and financial constraints will later on hone the design into something simple and elegant. Specifically, the "plaza" seems to be the most troubling aspect so far. Maybe I'll grow to like it in its finished form.
More importantly I hope that this version of the project actually proceeds to a finished product. I don't know for sure why previous proposals have failed to come to fruition over the past 20+ years, but it seems that our new Dean is quite an effective leader and could have the momentum to finally realize a new building. On a recent visit back to campus I noticed all new computers, scanners, plotters, desks, chairs, milling machings, paint, carpet, a new newsletter, and so on -- all of which have been introduced under the new Dean. These could be classified as superficial minutae, but for me they signify some heightened intensity/rigor/activity in the school that may have waned over time.
Anyway, I look forward to future updates.....
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