hanrahan Meyers architects BLOG

hanrahan Meyers architects: Archive: Arts International

Arts International is an Art Gallery and Performance space designed by hanrahan Meyers architects, in 2000. The project was recognized with a 2000 AIA NYChapter Design Award, and was published in Architectural Record.  

view of main gallery space - Arts International click here to view more photos of Arts International on www.hanrahanMeyers.com

The project was an idea about treating an interior space as a landscape.  hMa designed a free-floating 'conference room', which could double as an Event Space.  The Conference Room was a free-standing box, with Glass at one end, and one side opening  toward the open gallery with two full-height pivot doors, capble of pivoting open 180 degrees.  This flexibility allowed the not-for-profit organization who hired hMa to use the space for a large variety of arts events.

main gallery space - Arts International click here to view more photos of Arts International on www.hanrahanMeyers.com

The project included offices for staff, designed by hMa as miminalist framed boxes.  

view of offices at Arts International click here to view more photos of Arts International at www.hanrahanMeyers.com

hanrahan Meyers architects has a reputation for designing minimalist projects featuring natural materials, and space.  For more information about Arts International, and other works by hanrahan Meyers architects, visit our website:  www.hanrahanMeyers.com.

North American Wood Design Honor Award for hMa's Won Dharma Retreat in Claverack, New York

hanrahan Meyers architects (hMa) are pleased to announce that their Won Dharma Retreat in Claverack, New York, has received an Honor Design Award from the 2011 North American Wood Design Awards program.

"Ottawa, ON, January 13th, 2012 – The Wood Design & Building magazine is pleased to announce the award recipients for the prestigious 2011 North American Awards Program. Sixteen projects were hand selected from over one-hundred entries by an esteemed jury panel: Andrew Frontini from Perkins+Will, James Cutler from Cutler Anderson and Robert Hull from Miller Hull.

The caliber of entries was extremely high this year, making the selection process challenging for the jury who based their selection on considerations such as creativity, appropriate use of wood materials, ability to satisfy the client’s building and site requirements and the overall aesthetic appeal for the use and application of wood." 

Click here to read the full press release from the Canadian Wood Council.

The Won Buddhist Retreat is a small, five building, retreat located in upstate New York.  All of the buildings are FSC wood, and the building compound is designed to make a 'Zero Carbon Footprint' on the site.  

model: aerial site view from south click here to view more photos on Won Dharma Retreat on www.hanrahanmeyers.com

 

The compound of five separate, but formally connected, buildings was designed to sit on a site area that had been used as a loose stone quarry.  By siting the buildings in the area where there had been stone quarrying activity, hMa used a Brownfield site, and mitigated the effect of building on a wooded site.  

Won Dharma Retreat: Meditation Hall from west click here to view more photos on Won Dharma Retreat on www.hanrahanmeyers.com

After the buildings were constructed, the Clients, the Won Buddhism of North America, covered the site with organic topsoil, graded the site for proper drainage, and made a plan to plant 1000 trees.  So far, the Clients have planted 100 of the future 1000 trees.

site view from guest residence 1 click here to view more photos on Won Dharma Retreat on www.hanrahanmeyers.com

hanrahan Meyers architects Likes "Amazing Timelapse of a 30-story Building Constructed in Only 360 Hours!"

Repost from Gizmodo:

 

hanrahan Meyers architects Likes the 530 Shop!

Today's New York Times (January 8, 2012) features a story by writer Sabrina Tavernise about 'the 530 Shop'.  It seems that Art Oehlke, of Lorain, Ohio (near Cleveland) - is doing something that hanrahan Meyers architects (hMa) wishes that more people had the courage to do.  He's standing up to urban blight and flight, by opening up a shop in Lorain, where all of the other storefronts are empty.  Mr. Oehlke's shop, and Mr. Oehlke himself, are taking a stand to maintain and retain an original American town's central shopping district, in  defiance to the local malls, which emptied out the town. 

The 530 Shop in Lorain, Ohio  photo: Michael McElroy for The New York Times

This same issue of the NY Times featured a very intelligent story by Michael Kimmelman, 'Paved But Still Alive', which deals with issues that stem from the same kit of parts: communities where poor to no planning and / or vision result in deserted strip malls.  In Mr. Kimmelman's piece, he looks more closely at an 'abandoned' mall, and finds life in several alternative uses and tenants who have taken over what appeared as an abandoned mall, but which in fact is fostering life, albeit with a very different vision, and set of users than the original developers had planned to support.

Yann Arthus-Bertrand/Altitude  (re-posted from Nytimes.com)

hMa believes that the pathologies that lead to deserted towns and abandoned strip malls, come out from a culture with little to no foresight or planning.  hMa believes in Green design, and we promote and support Green Roofs, Green Streets, and the LEED certification process.  

hMa is an architectural practice that has produced several successful master planning projects, including Battery Park City's North Neighborhood, one of the most far-sighted Green communities in the world, where all of the buildings and Parks are LEED certified, as well as the Won Buddhist Retreat in upstate New York, where the construction used 100% FSC Woods, and the 550-acre wooded site was designed with five buildings, which had 'Zero-Carbon' footprint on the site.  

Won Dharma Center by hanrahan Meyers architects click here to see more photos of the project on hanrahanMeyers.com

To read more about the two articles noted above, please go to the following links:  'A Dimly Flickering Light In a Darkened Downtown:   ;  'Paved But Still Alive':  . 

To read more about hanrahan Meyers architects and their works, visit our website: www.hanrahanMeyers.com.  

Best Wishes for 2012!

 

Infinity Chapel by hanrahan Meyers architects

 

photo credit : Michael Moran / ottoarchive.com

 

hanrahan Meyers architects likes: 'Speed of Light Lingers in Face of New Camera'

hanrahan Meyers architects likes today's New York Times (December 14, 2011), featuring a new camera invented by MIT Media Lab scientist and MIT Professor Dr. Ramesh Raskar. 'Speed of Light Lingers In Face of New Camera' adds to conversations with Dr. Lene Hau of Harvard University's Physics Department.  Victoria Meyers' book 'Designing with Light' included conversations about the physics of light with Dr. Lene Hau of Harvard University.

Designing with Light, by Victoria Meyers

Dr. Raskar's new camera is capable of freeze framing light, and capturing how and where light has penetrated into objects that it is hitting.  The camera offers a new way to study light and how it interacts with everyday objects.  The applications will be profound.  In addition, Dr. Raskar's goal is to develop another new type of camera, capable of bending around corners, in order to 'see' what is happening in other rooms and spaces, beyond what was 'fit' into the camera lens.  Sounds amazing, and we are sitting on the edges of our seats to hear about new and future contributions to the science of Light by Dr. Raskar.

To read the full New York Times article, click the link: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/13/science/speed-of-light-lingers-in-face-of-mit-media-lab-camera.html.

 

Won Dharma Center featured as Building of the Week on American-Architects.com. hanrahan Meyers architects

Won Dharma Center:  Meditation and Administration at dusk click here to view more photos on www.hanrahanmeyers.com
(Photo: © Michael Moran/ottoarchive.com)

Below is an excerpt from the article posted on Dec 5. 2011:

"On a large rural property in upstate New York, overlooking the Hudson Valley and the Catskill Mountains, sits the Won Dharma Center, "a spiritual community, where people from all walks of life study, ... live and work together." The beautiful setting is enhanced by the new buildings for the Center designed by New York City's Hanrahan Meyers Architects. Serene yet contemporary, the buildings are marked by wooden exteriors and simple interiors. The architects answered some questions about the project that officially opened on October 2, 2011.

What were the circumstances of receiving the commission for this project?

The owner’s representative initially requested a number of architects from the Northeastern region of the U.S. to submit their portfolio for review by the Won Buddhist organization and project sponsors.  A short list of three architects was created, and the owner’s representatives along with three reverends from the Won Buddhist organization conducted interviews and visits to completed projects by the architects.  Additionally, hMa sent a series of speculative sketches and drawings that imagined the site and the buildings based on meetings with the clients..."

Click here to read the full article on american-architects.com

Won Dharma Center: interior of Meditation Hall click here to view more photos on www.hanrahanmeyers.com
(Photo: © Michael Moran/ottoarchive.com)

DWiP: Digital Water Pavilion (Battery Park City Community Center) by hanrahan Meyers architects featured in Wall Street Journal

aerial site photo of DWiP/ Battery Park City Community Center in construction

Here is an excerpt from the article:

Battery Park City Wraps Up Building
By: Joseph De Avila

The center marks the completion of the Battery Park City Authority's role as the lead developer for the neighborhood—a role it has played for more than 40 years.

"We are closing one chapter as real-estate developer and opening a new chapter as a building manager," said Gayle Horwitz, chief executive of the authority.

The other project the authority is working on is the development of Pier A, which has been closed to the public for several decades. It will include food courts and performance space and is expected to be finished by the fall of 2012.

A rendering showing the complex at ground level. It is expected to be finished in February.

In 1968, the Battery Park City Authority was formed to oversee planning for the nascent neighborhood that was built on landfill from the excavation of the World Trade Center. In its early days, the authority put together a master plan for Battery Park City to manage the growth of the neighborhood.

Click here to read the full article on wsj.com

 

hanrahan Meyers architects' Infinity Chapel featured in "Brilliant: White In Design" by Linda O'Keeffe

Infinity Chapel designed by hanrahan Meyers architects, featured in 'Brilliant:  White in Design'

hanrahan Meyers architects' (hMa's) Infinity Chapel is featured in Linda O'Keeffe's latest book, Brilliant: White In Design.  hMa's Infinity Chapel opened in 2010 in Greenwich Village, NYC, and has been recognized for excellence in design by the Architectural League of New York, and received a New York State AIA Design Award for Design Excellence. 

cover of Brilliant: White In Design by Linda O'Keeffe

More on the book from the publisher:

It all begins and ends with white.

White is everywhere, from sculptures and art installations to interior and furniture designs to fields of snow and mythical animals. In its countless tones—eggshell, ballerina, off-white, edelweiss, and so many more—white elicits a range of emotions, depending on the viewer, the design, the culture, the use.

Brilliant: White in Design examines the spectrum of colors and talents inherent in white, exploring how it is used, and viewed, in art, design, architecture, and nature. Noted design writer Linda O’Keeffe parses the language of white and considers its strengths and, at times, its weaknesses. She shows that living with white has soothing rewards and dust-collecting drawbacks; that beige is not a four-letter word but a glamorous alternative to its more pristine counterpart; that designing with white reduces everything to pure form; and much more...  Click here to look inside the book and to purchase from Monacelli Press

hanrahan Meyers architects featured in "Guide to Contemporary New York City Architecture"

hanrahan Meyers architects (hMa) are pleased to announce the upcoming release of the Guide to Contemporary New York City Architecture by John Hill, published by W.W. Norton & Company.  The book will feature three of hMa's built projects: Infinity Chapel, Pratt Pavilion, and WaveLine along with Digital Water Pavilion (Battery Park City Community Center) as a project under construction.

A launch party for the book will take place on November 21st at 7PM at Van Alen Books, 30 W. 22nd St (ground floor btw 5th and 6th ave).  A second event will take place December 5th at 7pm at McNally Jackson, where John will give a visual presentation highlighting some of his favorite buildings, as well as some lesser known gems and projects in out-of-the-way parts of the city. McNally Jackson is located at 52 Prince Street (between Lafayette & Mulberry).

left: cover Guide to Contemporary New York City Architecture ; right: hMa's Pratt Pavilion, WaveLine, Infinity Chapel, and Digital Water Pavilion are all featured in the book (images run clockwise from top left)

More on the book (from the publisher):
Guide to Contemporary New York City Architecture
John Hill
Paperback, December 2011, 304 pages

Click here to purchase

A building boom swept New York City and its boroughs in the first decade of the twenty-first century, giving rise to a host of new and architecturally cutting-edge residential, corporate, institutional, academic, and commercial structures designed by starchitects and up-and-comers alike. Perfectly timed for touring the city’s new skyline, this guidebook visits and maps them all out, literally.

Arranged by neighborhood, the guide allows for easy, self-guided tours, with more than 350 vibrant photos, 22 maps, subway and bus directions, and compelling anecdotes about each building’s history, design, or construction.

A guidebook that architecture lovers, tourists, and natives alike won’t want to be without, here is your ticket to exploring the eclectic array of contemporary buildings that New York City has to offer.