June 22, 2007
  Mask of the Mimic, Suppleness of Stage
Like any good actor, Sidney Harman Hall is versatile in practice, malleable in nature, and in command of its genre.
Sidney Harman Hall, in downtown Washington, D.C., by Canada’s Diamond + Schmitt Architects Inc., is a theater of unparalleled versatility in stage presentation and function. Its flexible and transparent design allows for the persistent relevance of classical theater to shine through. The stage configuration can be determined by the play’s mood and sensibility; a classically framed proscenium, an open and exposed end stage, or a thrust stage that injects drama into the audience’s laps where the line between audience and performer softens and blurs.

L.A. County Schools Embracing Density
Panorama high school stacks four levels around a quad
As people continue to move into California, the planners of this once spread out and land-rich region are rethinking the one-story building norm. The solution for LAUSD’s new Panorama High School as envisioned by architecture firm WWCOT in L.A. was to embrace the density challenge and create a four-story high school wrapped around a quad. The project’s greatest design challenges were to accommodate facilities for 2,100 students in a dense urban area, provide safe and secure learning environments, and foster academic inspiration and pride with a sense of student and community ownership.

“Show You’re Green” Awards Go to Eight Sustainable—and Affordable—Projects
The AIA Housing and Custom Residential Knowledge Community selected eight “Show You’re Green” projects as examples of outstanding housing that is both affordable and green. The winning projects will be showcased online in the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Affordable Housing Design Advisor to demonstrate diverse ways in which green practices are being integrated into exemplary affordable housing. The projects and their architects were recognized during AIA Housing and Custom Residential Knowledge Community Awards Ceremony during the 2007 national convention in San Antonio In May.

 

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Welcome to the Design Zone
Here is where you will find our weekly Project Watch, short vignettes on notable projects in this country and abroad. The Design Zone is also where you will find coverage of awards programs, including the national Honor Awards as well as state and local component awards.