Celebrating the most innovative spaces in the realm of interior design, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) has selected this year's recipients for the prestigious Institute Honor Awards for Interior Architecture. These eight projects will be recognized for their exceptional design at the AIA 2015 National Convention and Design Exposition in Atlanta.
Learn more about the winning designs after the break.
Arent Fox; Washington, D.C. / STUDIOS Architecture
Key elements of this office building include a formal reception space with a physical and visual connection to the building lobby, a conference center, an auditorium with tiered seating, break-out areas for receptions, and slab openings on typical office floors for visual connection to other floors. The building has two primary street-facing sides and two sides that face an alley. To create parity between the two, the design places key elements on the alley side of the building to draw people from the front to the back for collaboration and support functions. Glass was used to shape offices and conference rooms and to blur the line between circulation and enclosed spaces.
The Barbarian Group; New York City / Clive Wilkinson Architects; Design Republic Partners Architects LLP
The offices for digital marketing firm The Barbarian Group were designed with connectivity, accessibility, and collaboration in mind. Simplifying the basic needs of the conventional office to their core, an endless table was envisioned that connects all employees at a single surface. The table, dubbed “the Superdesk,” rises and falls throughout the space, lifting over pathways and creating work and meeting grottos beneath its arches. Its plywood underside is made of 870 unique laser-cut panels, and its top surface is a light-reflecting pearlescent white with a clear epoxy coating.
Beats By Dre; Culver City, California / Bestor Architecture
The Beats By Dre campus was designed to reflect the diverse and innovative work undertaken in the music and technological fields. The main building is carved by a, two-story lobby that forms an axis and two courtyards to orient the work spaces. Courtyards connect to the varied working environments and include offices, open workstations, flexible work zones, and interactive conference rooms. The office plan encourages interaction and contact across departments by establishing a variety of calculated environments that exist within the larger workspace: peaceful, activated, elegant or minimal.
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Museum Store; Bentonville, Arkansas / Marlon Blackwell Architect
The work of a local Arkansas basket maker, Leon Niehues, known for his sculpturally ribbed baskets made from young white oak trees from the Ozarks, provided the design inspiration for the museum store, located at the heart of the Moshe Safdie, FAIA, designed museum (2011) in Bentonville, Arkansas. A series of 224 parallel ribs, made of locally harvested cherry plywood, were digitally fabricated directly from the firm’s Building Information Modeling delivery process. Beginning at the top of the exterior glass wall, the ribs extend across the ceiling and down the long rear wall of the store.
Illinois State Capitol West Wing Restoration; Springfield, Illinois / Vinci Hamp Architects
The West Wing of the Illinois State Capitol is the second phase of a comprehensive renovation program of this 293,000-square-foot National Historic Landmark. Designed by French émigré architect Alfred Piquenard between 1868 and 1888, the Capitol represents the apogee of Second Empire design in Illinois. Over the years inappropriate changes were made through insensitive modifications and fires. The project mandate was to restore the exuberant architecture of the West Wing’s four floors and basement, while simultaneously making necessary life safety, accessibility, security and energy efficient mechanical, electrical, & plumbing system upgrades.
Louisiana State Museum; Natchitoches, Louisiana / Trahan Architects
The Louisiana State Museum merges historical and sports collections, elevating the experience for both. Set in the oldest settlement in the Louisiana Purchase on the banks of the Cane River Lake, the quiet yet innovative design reinterprets the geometry of the nearby plantation houses and the topography of the riverfront; between past and future. Spaces flow together to accommodate exhibits, education, event and support functions. The hand-folded copper container contrasts with the digitally carved cast-stone entry and foyer within, highlighting the dialogue between the manmade and the natural.
National September 11 Memorial Museum; New York City / Davis Brody Bond
The 9/11 Memorial Museum is built upon the foundations of the Twin Towers, 70 feet below street level. Visitors reach the museum via a gently sloped descent, a journey providing time and space for reflection and remembrance. Iconic features of the site, such as the surviving Slurry Wall, are progressively revealed. This quiet procession allows visitors to connect to their own memories of 9/11 as part of the experience. Located at the site of the event, the museum provides an opportunity to link the act of memorialization with the stories, artifacts and history of that day.
Newport Beach Civic Center and Park; Newport Beach, California / Bohlin Cywinski Jackson
The Newport Beach Civic Center and Park creates a center for civic life in this Southern California beachside community. Nestled within a new 17-acre park, the City Hall is designed for clarity and openness. A long, thin building supporting a rhythmic, wave-shaped roof provides a light and airy interior, complemented by connections to outdoor program elements, a maritime palette, and commanding views of the Pacific Ocean. The project’s form and expression are generated by place and sustainability, as well as the City’s democratic values of transparency and collaboration.
The 2015 jury included:
- Rick Kremer, FAIA (Chair), Architect Rick Kremer, FAIA
- Matt Murphy, AIA, RMTA
- Luke Ogrydziak, AIA, Ogrydziak Prillinger Architects
- Susan Elizabeth Seifert, AIA, seifertmurphy
- Steven Shapiro, Hon. AIA, Clark Construction
Project descriptions courtesy of the AIA
