Albert Einstein is quoted as saying, “The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge, but imagination.” The Institute for Advanced Study may have had this idea of Einstein’s (who worked at the IAS for over 20 years until the time of his death in 1955) in mind when looking for an architecture firm to design its new Rubenstein Commons. Ultimately, IAS decided the most imaginative and, therefore, intelligent design belonged to Steven Holl Architects and awarded the firm the project.
The new Rubenstein Commons, which is named after David Rubenstein, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of the Carlyle Group, is set to be an approximately 20,000-sf structure at the center of the IAS campus meant to encourage interactions among the institute’s diverse community of scholars.
The building will include social and meeting spaces with the purpose of promoting communication and collaboration and will also offer space to display images and materials that tell the story of the institute’s heritage, scholarly community, and current and future efforts.
As The New York Times reports, the building will have a patina copper roof and oak floors reminiscent of another building on the campus, Fuld Hall. This plays into the strategy the Director of the Institute, Robbert Dijkgraaf, laid out, saying the new building should be like “a family member with its own characteristics.”
In addition to blending in with other buildings already on the campus, the design will also blend in and “talk to” the surrounding landscape, as opposed to standing in contrast to it.
Along with Steven Holl Architects, MOS Architects, OMA, and Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects were also invited to submit proposals.
Other famous alumni of the Institute for Advanced Study include J. Robert Oppenheimer, Erwin Panofsky, and Hetty Goldman.
Fuld Hall
Aerial View of IAS Campus. Photo Credit: Hanno Rein, Wikimedia Commons
Related Stories
| Jun 20, 2013
Virtual meetings enhance design of University at Buffalo Medical School
HOK designers in New York, St. Louis and Atlanta are using virtual meetings with their University at Buffalo (UB) client team to improve the design process for UB’s new School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus.
| 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 12, 2013
More than 90% of New York City schools have code violations
More than 90% of New York City schools have at least one outstanding building code violation. Loose wires, stuck doors and inadequate ventilation are just some of the problems.
| 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 12, 2013
Sacred synergy achieves goals for religious education [2013 Building Team Award winner]
A renovation/addition project at Columbia Theological Seminary unites a historic residence hall with a modern classroom facility.
| Jun 11, 2013
Music/dance building supports sweet harmony [2013 Building Team Award winner]
A LEED Gold project enhances a busy Chicago neighborhood, meeting ambitious criteria for acoustical design and adaptability.
| Jun 11, 2013
Vertical urban campus fills a tall order [2013 Building Team Award winner]
Roosevelt University builds a 32-story tower to satisfy students’ needs for housing, instruction, and recreation.
| Jun 11, 2013
Building a better box: High-bay lab aims for net-zero [2013 Building Team Award winner]
Building Team cooperation and expertise help Georgia Tech create a LEED Platinum building for energy science.
| Jun 7, 2013
First look: University of Utah's ‘teaching hospital for law’
The University of Utah broke ground on its cutting-edge College of Law building, which will facilitate new approaches to legal education based on more hands-on learning and skills training.
| Jun 5, 2013
USGBC: Free LEED certification for projects in new markets
In an effort to accelerate sustainable development around the world, the U.S. Green Building Council is offering free LEED certification to the first projects to certify in the 112 countries where LEED has yet to take root.
