The Georgia chapter of the AIA presented four Honor Awards for Architecture and three Honor Awards for Interiors at the chapter’s 2004 Design and Honor Award gala in Atlanta October 16. The chapter also awarded seven Bronze Medals, given to AIA Georgia members for distinguished and outstanding service to the Institute and the community; four Service Awards; and the Young Architect Award. In addition, the chapter bestowed its highest honor, the Bernard B. Rothschild Award, upon outgoing AIA national board member Stephen T. Swicegood, FAIA. The Rothschild Award is given in recognition of most distinguished service to the profession of architecture in Georgia.

Honor Awards, Architecture

The Georgia Archives, Morrow, Ga., by Hellmuth Obata + Kassabaum
This highly specialized government office engaged the architect to create a light, open, and welcoming building, a delightful contrast to its former dark, monolithic office in downtown Atlanta. The client’s major goals were to create a space that reflects how the organization works; enhance the visitor reception and security screening processes; and improve visitor opportunities including education, research, and culture. The jury considered this “a consistent, well-thought-out, and very refined project . . . The interiors are handled in a consistent manner with details that are refined with a scale appropriate to the project.”
Photo © Timothy Hursley and Gabriel Benzur.

Daniel-Flagg Villas, Savannah, by Lominack Kolman Smith Architects
To provide temporary housing for transient persons living with the AIDS virus, a local nonprofit agency renovated a block of neglected and deteriorated historic railroad cottages. Adjacent to the nonprofit’s outreach and treatment facility, the affordable housing offers an attractive solution in a challenged neighborhood. The agency and architect worked with HUD, the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, and the City of Savannah to create an uplifting, affirming space for people in need. The jury was pleased that “the project exhibited a vernacular quality without trying to reproduce history. The preserved parts enhanced the project immensely.”
Photo © Atlantic Archives, Richard Leo Johnson.

Bailey HouseStudio, Atlanta, by Mack Scogin Merrill Elam Architects
This 7.5 acre lot in Southwest Atlanta contains the remnants of an overgrown Civil War-era roadbed to an historic mill. The heavily wooded site offers the family an abundance of privacy and convenience, yet respects the historic nature of the property. The jury enthused that this home is “a wonderful sculptural mass that frames views of nature. The exterior detailing and outdoor spaces are well designed, appearing as a line weaving its way through the trees.”
Photo © Timothy Hursley.

Jean Hargrove Music Library, Berkeley, Calif., by Mack Scogin Merrill Elam Architects
Previously housed on the top floor of a 1940s classroom, the University of California, Berkeley’s music library now boasts nearly 29,000 square feet for its extensive public collection of original scores, rare manuscripts, and regional music. With the completion of the music library, the music department gains a third building to symbolically complete its triad of interests: teaching, performance, and research. “This project exhibits a high level of detail for an institutional building,” notes the jury. “The site is very well crafted and the site design fits the context. The execution of craftsmanship is extraordinary.”
Photo © Tim Griffith Photographer.

Honor Awards, Interior Architecture

Primal Screen, Atlanta, by Surber Barber Choate & Hertlein Architects, Inc.
Once a “seedy, low-slung, 1940s-era warehouse,” this animation, broadcast design, and sound design studio now boasts an open environment that encourages creativity. The plan was developed around the idea of “streets” and “avenues” with purposeful variations of hierarchy and scale and intentional accidents. “This project has a nice spatial flow and juxtaposition of different materials,” the jurors felt. “This feels more personal than institutional—as though you are at home. The colors add great vibrancy to the space.”
Photo © Phillip Spears Commercial Photographer.

Anne Frank Exhibit, Kennesaw, Ga., by Stevens & Wilkinson Stang & Newdow, Inc. and idea|span
Installed in a 2,500-square-foot space at Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, Ga., this exhibit tells the story of Anne Frank and her family in Nazi Germany during World War II. Sponsored by the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust, the exhibit also features select student art work. “This was terrific because of the way the architecture enhances the exhibit with wonderfully detailed spaces,” the jury felt. “This is a well-crafted project with a wonderful material quality that makes you want to touch it. The architecture actually enhances the story of Anne Frank.”
Photo © Brian Robbins Photography and Harrison Northcutt Photography.

Interface Showroom and Offices, Atlanta, by Thompson, Ventulett, Stainback & Associates
A premier floor-covering manufacturer and leading advocate of sustainable design engaged the architect to build a new urban retail and commercial showroom in downtown Atlanta. The 6,000-square-foot showroom and office facility is convenient to customers, allows for exceptional flexibility in the display and mockup of products, tells the company’s “image story,” and supports urban redevelopment. Additionally, the project was designed under the LEED-CI™ (Commercial Interiors) pilot program and has been submitted for the Platinum rating. “This is an incredibly polished project,” enthused the jury. “There is a museum-like quality, almost like a museum for furniture. Open and yet defined spaces are appropriate for the project. Spatial divisions were created without the use of rooms.”
Photo © Brian Gassel, TVS&A.

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