Built in 1905, Goldwin Smith Hall is a major component in the facilities of the College of Arts and Sciences at Cornell University. This project tackled two existing space problems through sequenced adaptive reuse.
A semicircular, 200-seat auditorium, renovated in the 1960s had proved undesirable. Due to poor sightlines, classroom instruction with display boards and projection was a challenge. The location, however, was central to the College and ideal for the Dean's offices, which had to be relocated from an adjacent building. A recently vacated, two-story volume off the building's main entrance presented the opportunity for a new lecture hall to replace the underused auditorium. A new concrete floor, sloping down from the entry level to the floor below creates a 135-seat lecture hall with fully accessible ramped seating. Existing arched window openings develop gently curved ceiling planes to modulate the length and narrowness of the room.
With the old auditorium replaced, phase two began with complete removal of applied finishes from the semicircular space, revealing heavy timber and wrought iron trusses that became the focus of the design for the Dean's offices. Working with the geometry of the space, the private offices encircle a central support zone that is enlivened by a new skylight set into the roof above. The study and drawing of this space has become one of the first assignments given to Cornell's first-year architecture students.
Award:
Honor Award, American Institute of Architects, Southern New York
