flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

BIG’s design for Philadelphia Navy Yard defies gravity

Office Buildings

BIG’s design for Philadelphia Navy Yard defies gravity

The optical illusion was inspired by the circular running track of the park adjacent to the site.


By BD+C Staff | July 15, 2015
BIG’s design for Philadelphia Navy Yard defies gravity

The new structure will be part of a new mixed-use campus on Philadelphia’s historic Navy Yard. Renderings courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group + Luxigon.

Ground has broken for 1200 Interpid, a 94,000-sf office building designed by BIG at Philadelphia’s historic Navy Yard, ArchDaily reports. The project is commissioned by Liberty Property Trust and will mark the developer’s 14th project at Navy Yards, a 1200-acre office park.

Inhabitat describes the building’s design as “an optical illusion,” as the four-story structure appears to be leaning. To date, only rendering’s of the building’s exterior have been circulated.

The $35 million project will be built adjacent to a five-acre park called Central Green. BIG’s gravity-defying structure will be part of a mixed-used campus being developed by Liberty Property Trust.

From the architects:

“1200 Interpid will be a LEED Gold office building shaped by the encounter between Robert Stern’s master plan of rectangular city blocks and James Corner’s iconic, circular Central Green Park.

The building’s double curved, pre-cast concrete façade bows inwards to create a generous urban canopy that responds to the ‘shock wave’ of the park’s circular running track, activity pods, and planting vignettes—rippling outwards like rings in water to invade the building’s footprint. Shaped by the city grid, the cornice and remaining elevations return to the orthogonal design of the master plan, forming the building’s double curve and melding the neighborhood’s two dominant forms.

Referencing the Navy Yard’s maritime history while providing much needed natural light, a functioning periscope penetrates the core of the building, projecting views of the Navy Yard basin into the center of the elevator lobby. Visitors and employees will be able to admire the mothballed ships sitting in the adjacent docks, while embracing Central Green Park—connecting the building and its inhabitants to their surroundings.”

Renderings courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group

Renderings courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group

Renderings courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group

Renderings courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group

Renderings courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group

Renderings courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group

Related Stories

| Jul 1, 2013

LEGOLAND builds 12-foot replica of One World Trade Center

The LEGOLAND Discovery Center Westchester in Yonkers, N.Y., celebrated the completion of a LEGO replica of One World Trade Center by lighting the 12-foot-tall, 100-pound model.

| Jul 1, 2013

Report: Global construction market to reach $15 trillion by 2025

A new report released today forecasts the volume of construction output will grow by more than 70% to $15 trillion worldwide by 2025.

| Jun 28, 2013

Building owners cite BIM/VDC as 'most exciting trend' in facilities management, says Mortenson report

A recent survey of more than 60 building owners and facility management professionals by Mortenson Construction shows that BIM/VDC is top of mind among owner professionals. 

| Jun 18, 2013

Report: HVAC occupancy sensors could slash building energy demand by 18%

Researchers at the DOE's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory conclude that significant energy savings can be achieved by varying ventilation levels based on the number of people in a given space.

| Jun 17, 2013

First look: Austin to get first high-rise since 2003

Developer Cousins Properties broke ground on the 29-story Colorado Tower in downtown Austin, Texas, the city's first high-rise building since Cousins' completed the Frost Bank Tower a decade ago.

| Jun 17, 2013

DOE launches database on energy performance of 60,000 buildings

The Energy Department today launched a new Buildings Performance Database, the largest free, publicly available database of residential and commercial building energy performance information.

| Jun 13, 2013

7 great places that represent excellence in environmental design

An adaptive reuse to create LEED Platinum offices, a park that honors veterans, and a grand national plaza are among the seven projects named winners of the 2013 Great Places Awards. The Environmental Design and Research Association  recognize professional and scholarly excellence in environmental design, with special attention paid to the relationship between physical form and human activity or experience.

| Jun 12, 2013

5 building projects that put the 'team' in teamwork

The winners of the 2013 Building Team Awards show that great buildings cannot be built without the successful collaboration of the Building Team. 

| Jun 11, 2013

Finnish elevator technology could facilitate supertall building design

KONE Corporation has announced a new elevator technology that could make it possible for supertall buildings to reach new heights by eliminating several problems of existing elevator technology. The firm's new UltraRope hoisting system uses a rope with a carbon-fiber core and high-friction coating, rather than conventional steel rope.

| Jun 6, 2013

Get smart about space utilization in the workplace

As we continue to look for more effective ways to improve the overall workplace experience, one tool we can use is measuring and analyzing space utilization.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category



Sustainable Design and Construction

Northglenn, a Denver suburb, opens a net zero, all-electric city hall with a mass timber structure

Northglenn, Colo., a Denver suburb, has opened the new Northglenn City Hall—a net zero, fully electric building with a mass timber structure. The 32,600-sf, $33.7 million building houses 60 city staffers. Designed by Anderson Mason Dale Architects, Northglenn City Hall is set to become the first municipal building in Colorado, and one of the first in the country, to achieve the Core certification: a green building rating system overseen by the International Living Future Institute.


MFPRO+ News

San Francisco unveils guidelines to streamline office-to-residential conversions

The San Francisco Department of Building Inspection announced a series of new building code guidelines clarifying adaptive reuse code provisions and exceptions for converting office-to-residential buildings. Developed in response to the Commercial to Residential Adaptive Reuse program established in July 2023, the guidelines aim to increase the viability of converting underutilized office buildings into housing by reducing regulatory barriers in specific zoning districts downtown. 

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021