New book about buildings supports both people and plants

A new book by GSAPP Dean Emerita Amale Andraos and Dan Wood offers readers an overview of their recent design work.

"Buildings for People and Plants by WORKac" is an exploration of 10 recent projects by the New York-based design firm WORKac, navigating through the interconnected realms of architecture, environment, community-centric design, and social sustainability.

In the book, WORKac co-founders Andraos, dean emerita and professor at the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation (GSAPP), and Wood, who has taught at GSAPP, take readers on a tour of such projects as the Rhode Island School of Design's Student Success Center and the Miami Museum Garage.

The book includes an introductory essay by Andraos and Wood, and a visual presentation that showcases how WORKac's architectural projects engage with their specific cultural and environmental contexts to support both people and plants. Also featured is a conversation with the two architects, conducted by the Orange County Museum of Art's director Heidi Zuckerman, an essay by architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff, and an appendix with detailed information on the projects presented in the volume.

Andraos (with a little help from Wood) discusses the book and their work with Columbia News, along with which architects they would each invite to a dinner party.

How did this book come about?

This is the second book we have written on the work of our office. The first, from 2018, was called "We'll Get There When We Cross That Bridge." It was formatted as a series of dialogues between ourselves about the practice, as well as design strategies, urbanism, client relationships, sustainability, economics, and the creative life.

As the practice has matured, and more and more of what we have designed has been built, we knew we wanted to focus on buildings in this book—rather than the unbuilt architectural projects, urbanism, and interiors that filled the previous book. We wanted to show images rather than drawings or text; and an edited, straightforward presentation of the work rather than our 2018 book's everything AND the kitchen sink approach. In many ways, we wanted to present our architectural work as an artistic endeavor.

Can you share some details about WORKac projects from the book?

The most recent project included in the book is a very special one for us, our own house in Rhode Island—the Riverhouse. Because we were designing for ourselves, we were able to really experiment. The result is a passive house on a budget, which attains net-zero energy use without sacrificing views to nature and unexpected connections between inside and outside.

For the North Boulder Public Library in Colorado, we ran into challenges during the pandemic and had to adjust some of its more radical sustainability features. At the same time, we knew how important many of the architectural details were for the neighborhood—a ramp that provides after-hours access to meeting spaces, large windows with views out to the mountains, generous children's areas, and a maker kitchen and space.

Because Boulder's energy code is already so stringent and the public engagement process so intense, we were able to rally support and maintain those important features. The result is a building that still contains all the connections that matter.

How do you and Dan work together on projects? Who does what separately, or is everything a joint venture?

I like the idea of a joint venture! Yes, we design together. While we each have our own specialties (or probably fixations is a better word), every decision is a discussion between us and also with the team. Architecture is a collective art involving many people's voices and expertise, and after working together for so long, we have developed a kind of design language that allows us to make decisions and invent new things very quickly these days.

What are you working on now?

We are working on a number of cultural and institutional projects in the U.S.—the People's Theatre in Inwood, in Northern Manhattan; the renovation of the Sibley Dome for Cornell's College of Architecture, Art, and Planning; as well as a new library renovation at Vassar.

Internationally, we are doing a number of projects in Albania and in Lebanon, from residential developments to hospitality. Our Beirut Museum of Art is finally in construction. It's a very exciting time in the office.

What are you teaching this semester?

A design studio project for which students are invited to imagine a new Arab American Museum in Lower Manhattan. Few people know the history of early Arab immigration to the United States, but at the turn of the last century, there was a vibrant neighborhood centered on Washington Street, between Battery Park and Rector Street, which was called Little Syria, with immigrants from today's Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, and Jordan, along with some from North Africa.

Among this Syrian colony, literature flourished, and a well-known group of writers and poets was formed called the Pen League, which included Kahlil Gibran and Mikhail Naimi, and was frequented by Ameen Rihani, among others. These poets were incredibly influential as they contributed to the Nahda or Arab renaissance of the time, and explored many themes that were groundbreaking both then and now, such as the relationship between East and West.

In 1924, an immigration law stopped all migrants from Asia and the Arab world coming to this country, and the community dwindled away. The neighborhood was pretty much destroyed by eminent domain and new developments. Students are asked to reflect on that history and create a museum for the contemporary artistic and cultural contributions of Arab Americans today.

How do you balance the demands of WORKac and teaching? Do they intersect or do you keep them separate?

Both Dan and I started teaching at the same time as we started the office, so the two are quite intertwined in our minds and in practice, where we constantly bring ideas from one to the other. It is for us the ways in which we go back and forth between research and practice. Sometimes teaching feels more radical in terms of explorations, and sometimes our work in the office seems to be opening up more possibilities. So one of the two spaces always keeps inquiry and fresh perspectives alive.

Which three architects, dead or alive, would you invite to a dinner party, and why?

Amale: I went with the all-woman team.

Charlotte Perriand, who worked with Le Corbusier on his furniture projects, but later in her life built amazing large housing projects, including ski resorts in Switzerland.

Lina Bo Bardi, the Brazilian modernist whose projects are all so experimental, personal, and beautiful, no matter if she was designing a museum or an exhibition.

Zaha Hadid, who I met only once briefly, and whom I still have so much to ask and understand. While our work is very different, I do feel a certain kinship with her.

Dan: Well, Amale told me her three, so I had to change mine a little bit.

Le Corbusier, because, of course, I would want to have dinner with him. Despite his faults, his impact is still felt in the field, and the range of his curiosity and intellect still resonates in every aspect of contemporary architecture.

Eileen Grey. I wrote a paper on her in graduate school and have been obsessed with her small number of buildings and incredible range of furniture and objects ever since. Plus, she notoriously had a falling out with Corbusier, so that should enliven the conversation.

Minsuk Cho, a practicing architect of our generation working in Seoul, Korea, on an incredible variety of projects. He's a great architect. We went to school together and worked together in Rotterdam, and I know he is A LOT of fun at a dinner party.

Provided by Columbia University