The modern courthouse is a paradoxical building type— it is part of the city but should also be apart from the city—magisterial and imposing, yet also a public place where almost everyone ends up eventually, even if just for jury duty. … When SOM won the commission, Morrow presented the architects with a list of … Continued
Chicago-based SOM’s plans for the redevelopment of the East Riverfront in Detroit, Michigan have been unveiled. The Detroit RiverFront Conservancy, Detroit Economic Growth Corporation, and City of Detroit Planning and Development Department will work together to deliver SOM’s plan to revitalize the former blighted industrial area. The framework plan involves improving community access to the … Continued
Barnard College has unveiled designs for a new library and academic center by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM). The Cheryl and Philip Milstein Teaching and Learning Center at Barnard’s Morningside Heights campus will feature the “flexible learning spaces” that are pretty much de rigueur for any new academic building. The 128,000-square-foot, 11-story structure will be … Continued
On March 2nd, 2017, the first annual Italian Design Day was celebrated in cities around the world. Established in 2016 by the Italian government, the event celebrates the best of Italian design and its far-reaching global influence. To mark the occasion, SOM’s Chicago office opened its doors to host a public event in partnership with the Consulate General of Italy in Chicago, the Italian Cultural Institute, … Continued
Detroit’s east riverfront will not, after all, become the near-exclusive domain of high-end condominium and apartment dwellers. In a bold, new, and more democratic vision unveiled Wednesday evening, city planners showed off a blueprint to create three zones of public parkland on the riverfront where once private development had been scheduled to rise. … Landscape … Continued
On Tuesday, March 7th, SOM Associate Director Fernando Herrera will present to members of the Structural Engineers Association of Northern California (SEAONC) and the American Institute of Architects (AIA) in San Francisco. The two organizations are hosting their first joint PechaKucha Night—a series of concise, fast-paced presentations. In 20 slides at 20 seconds each, Herrera will share the results of interdisciplinary collaboration between architects and structural engineers at … Continued
SOM Design Director Michael Duncan and Associate Allison Albericci will present at the upcoming Society for College and University Planning (SCUP) 2017 Pacific Regional Conference. For this year’s event, themed “Game Changers: Leveraging the Unexpected and Making the Most of It,” Duncan and Albericci will speak about SOM’s work on the University of California, Merced … Continued
All cities bear scars, evidence of past planning decisions, made with the best of intentions, that affect urban space in negative ways over the following decades. For more than 40 years, Washington, D.C.’s northwest quadrant has suffered a particularly prominent one where the District’s downtown meets the Capitol Hill neighborhood to the east: A three-block-long, … Continued
On February 25, 2017, SOM Associate Director Rupa Garai and Senior Structural Engineer Samantha Walker conducted a hands-on engineering workshop for sixth- through ninth-grade students. The workshop was part of a conference designed to encourage young girls to consider pursuing education and career options in science and mathematics. Garai and Walker challenged the students to … Continued
The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation has honored the Chicago Public Library, Chinatown Branch with a 2017 Award for Architectural Excellence in Community Design. Awarded second place in its category at the 23rd Annual Chicago Neighborhood Development Awards, the Chinatown Branch was honored for its unique design and the dynamic role it plays in the community. “This is … Continued