OMA: milstein hall nearing completion

‘milstein hall cornell university’ by OMA in ithaca, new york, USA all images courtesy cornell / AAP image © william staffield

‘milstein hall’, the first new building for the cornell university college of architecture, art, and planning (AAP), has celebrated its grand opening in ithaca, new york, USA. designed by internationally-recognized architecture practice OMA, the 14,000 m2 educational complex spatially connects the originally fragmented area between four existing buildings with an elevated horizontal plate outfitted with floor-to-ceiling glass.

exterior view during construction image © william staffield

inserted into the interstitial space between rand, sibley, the foundrys and tjaden hall, the new facility focuses on the stimulating the interaction of programs while allowing flexibility over time. the operation and activities of the buildings is made transparent on the ground level by an angled glass facade which overlooks the sunken in 282-seat auditorium. manipulations of the floor plate resulted in a hill-like bulge that caters to a number of programs: the computer labs and meeting areas are housed under the curved form while the seats of the auditorium follow the natural incline of the structure; a portion of the hill penetrates out into the exterior, providing a playful communal space complete with pod-like LED stools, while the peak that punctures the upper plate provides an access point to the rest of the building.

face during installation image © william staffield

the higher level of the new hall provides an open layout for studios and work space. wrapped in floor-to-ceiling glazing, the interior benefits from a generous amount of natural daylight. a grid of skylights on the green roof further facilitates sunlight into the studios.

stay tuned for photographs of the completed building soon.

under the elevated volume image © william staffield

views of stairwell images © william staffield

studio level wrapping around existing hall  image © william staffield

floor-to-ceiling window image © william staffield

studio space image © william staffield

(left) up to street level (right) auditorium images © william staffield

seating image © william staffield

peak of the bulge from studio level image © william staffield

lifted up floor plate with a view into the lower level image © william staffield

staircase in basement image © william staffield

image © william staffield

exterior bulge image © william staffield

LED pods during installation image © william staffield

planting the green roof image © william staffield

roof lights image © william staffield

physical model

view from the gorge

level -1

level 0

level +1

roof level

rendered fly-by view

street view

exterior view from street level

exterior meeting space

view into auditorium

interior view of staircase up to studio level

section

section

project info:

partners in charge: rem koolhaas, shohei shigematsu associate in charge: ziad shehab team: jason long, michael smith, troy schaum, charles bermean, amparo casani, noah shepherd, alasdair graham, torsten schroeder, joshua beck, erica goetz, margaret arbanas, matthew seidel, tsuyoshi nakamoto, ritchie tao, konrad krupinski, kengo skorick, martin schliefer, marcin ganczarski, tanner merkeley, konstantin august, klaas kresse, mathieu de paepe, suzanna waldron, daphna glaubert, beatriz minquez de molina, jesse seegers, james davies, esa rustkeepaa, daniel gerber, paul georgeadis, julianna gola, betty ng, michael jefferson

collaborators: executive architect: KHA architects, LLC structural engineer: robert silman associates MEP engineer: plus group consulting engineering engineering servies: gryphon international facade design and engineering consultant: front, inc. acoustical consultant: DHV VB elevator consultant: persohn/hahn associates IT/data/security consultant: archi-technology lighting consultant: tillotson design associates, inc. audio/visual consultant: acentech roofing consultant: BPD roof consulting, inc. sustainability consultant: BVM engineering models: OMA / model en objekt / made by mistake