Engineering is function. Architecture is art.
It is why an engineer can design a building that meets needs while an architect can take lines and materials and create a statement.
Buildings are arguably society’s most visible and prominent art forms. You can make them drab or give them pizzazz. They also reflect the sensibilities and spirit of their times. Who couldn’t identify ornate Victorian houses or the proper Queen Anne houses with the 18th century or the sweeping classic California flat top with the 1950s?
In a day and age when big boxes dominate the landscape whether it is retail, industrial or even residential it is always a visible relief to see some gingerbread applied. But when those who commission building plans are willing to create an impression and turn an architect loose we all benefit.
Such is the case with five award-winning designs from Stockton-based LDA Partners and Manteca native Eric Whole who is an East Union High graduate and Ripon resident.
They have been honored with five of the twelve Awards of Excellence, by the Sierra Valley chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). The awards will be presented at the AIA Award Dinner on Oct. 22 at the Del Rio Country Club.
The LDA projects being recognized are:
•Arnold Rue Community Center, City of Stockton
•Stribley Community Center, City of Stockton
•Downtown Marina & Joan Darrah Promenade, City of Stockton
•Department of Motor Vehicles, Tracy
•Private Vacation Residence, Blairsden
In addition, the Arnold Rue Community Center was also selected for a Special Recognition Award.
Anyone who has made a trip to the Tracy DMV or strolled the Stockton waterfront should have no qualms with the judge’s decisions.
The judging panel was impressed by the high level of energy efficiency and environmental touches incorporated in the design that reduces everything from heating costs and other energy use to water consumption.
But to someone who has to enjoy what seems like an endless stay in a DMV office these days – even with an appointment – the feel of openness accented by strategically placed windows that provide 95 percent of the daytime illumination effectively eliminates the drab bureaucratic feel of most public places you’ll find in state buildings.
The outside is just as stunning in a reserved way. Bold jutting roof lines and canopies with cream-gray palette colors gives the building a feel of vibrancy as you approach instead of one feeling like you’re entering a tomb of doom to conduct mundane but essential business.
It is almost worth it to drive to Tracy to do your DMV business if it wasn’t for the fact you’d consume a gallon – give or take - of gasoline which goes against the entire concept of the building being environmentally friendly. The DMV office was completed in December 2008.
The Downtown Stockton Marina and Joan Darrah Promenade visually created a new feel for the Stockton waterfront.
It’s not that it was lacking to start with. Stockton – contrary to naysayers who judge the city by its “cover” along the Highway 99 and Interstate 5 corridors” – has a vibrant city center undergoing an amazing renaissance complete with something that is extremely unique in cities– an honest-to-goodness waterfront that is being used as the focus of creating an active and attractive urban center from entertainment, living and shopping, to simple community events.
The project centered around creating a 66-berth marina.
There was arguably no need for a roof structure as it doesn’t really serve an essential function. Yet after one look at what was created you couldn’t imagine what it would look like without the inverted pyramid-style tent-like features stretched across a grid pattern of six-squares accented by poles.
The promenade itself is a mixture of colored sandblasted concrete and pavers. The judges also took note of the colored broom concrete finish.
It essentially creates artwork that you walk on.
The bottom line is the marina and promenade could have been done in blah fashion but instead they took the appealing views of the waterfront and enhanced them significantly making it a true people friendly environment.
The Design Awards of Excellence Program promotes architectural achievement and recognizes significant works of architecture. It also serves to promote imagination and sensitivity in building design, foster the aesthetic quality of the community, and recognize special efforts in these endeavors.
These Awards, given by the Sierra Valley Chapter of the AIA, are conferred upon architects and building owners to recognize Design Excellence in Architecture. These Awards are only presented every two years and represent a geographical area covering eight counties, stretching from Lodi to Bishop to the Nevada border. The selection jury is composed of several architects that live and practice outside of our area, so as not to be partial to any particular project or style.
With a geographical area so broad and such a large lapse of time spread between awarding of projects, competition for these awards is tight.
It is why an engineer can design a building that meets needs while an architect can take lines and materials and create a statement.
Buildings are arguably society’s most visible and prominent art forms. You can make them drab or give them pizzazz. They also reflect the sensibilities and spirit of their times. Who couldn’t identify ornate Victorian houses or the proper Queen Anne houses with the 18th century or the sweeping classic California flat top with the 1950s?
In a day and age when big boxes dominate the landscape whether it is retail, industrial or even residential it is always a visible relief to see some gingerbread applied. But when those who commission building plans are willing to create an impression and turn an architect loose we all benefit.
Such is the case with five award-winning designs from Stockton-based LDA Partners and Manteca native Eric Whole who is an East Union High graduate and Ripon resident.
They have been honored with five of the twelve Awards of Excellence, by the Sierra Valley chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). The awards will be presented at the AIA Award Dinner on Oct. 22 at the Del Rio Country Club.
The LDA projects being recognized are:
•Arnold Rue Community Center, City of Stockton
•Stribley Community Center, City of Stockton
•Downtown Marina & Joan Darrah Promenade, City of Stockton
•Department of Motor Vehicles, Tracy
•Private Vacation Residence, Blairsden
In addition, the Arnold Rue Community Center was also selected for a Special Recognition Award.
Anyone who has made a trip to the Tracy DMV or strolled the Stockton waterfront should have no qualms with the judge’s decisions.
The judging panel was impressed by the high level of energy efficiency and environmental touches incorporated in the design that reduces everything from heating costs and other energy use to water consumption.
But to someone who has to enjoy what seems like an endless stay in a DMV office these days – even with an appointment – the feel of openness accented by strategically placed windows that provide 95 percent of the daytime illumination effectively eliminates the drab bureaucratic feel of most public places you’ll find in state buildings.
The outside is just as stunning in a reserved way. Bold jutting roof lines and canopies with cream-gray palette colors gives the building a feel of vibrancy as you approach instead of one feeling like you’re entering a tomb of doom to conduct mundane but essential business.
It is almost worth it to drive to Tracy to do your DMV business if it wasn’t for the fact you’d consume a gallon – give or take - of gasoline which goes against the entire concept of the building being environmentally friendly. The DMV office was completed in December 2008.
The Downtown Stockton Marina and Joan Darrah Promenade visually created a new feel for the Stockton waterfront.
It’s not that it was lacking to start with. Stockton – contrary to naysayers who judge the city by its “cover” along the Highway 99 and Interstate 5 corridors” – has a vibrant city center undergoing an amazing renaissance complete with something that is extremely unique in cities– an honest-to-goodness waterfront that is being used as the focus of creating an active and attractive urban center from entertainment, living and shopping, to simple community events.
The project centered around creating a 66-berth marina.
There was arguably no need for a roof structure as it doesn’t really serve an essential function. Yet after one look at what was created you couldn’t imagine what it would look like without the inverted pyramid-style tent-like features stretched across a grid pattern of six-squares accented by poles.
The promenade itself is a mixture of colored sandblasted concrete and pavers. The judges also took note of the colored broom concrete finish.
It essentially creates artwork that you walk on.
The bottom line is the marina and promenade could have been done in blah fashion but instead they took the appealing views of the waterfront and enhanced them significantly making it a true people friendly environment.
The Design Awards of Excellence Program promotes architectural achievement and recognizes significant works of architecture. It also serves to promote imagination and sensitivity in building design, foster the aesthetic quality of the community, and recognize special efforts in these endeavors.
These Awards, given by the Sierra Valley Chapter of the AIA, are conferred upon architects and building owners to recognize Design Excellence in Architecture. These Awards are only presented every two years and represent a geographical area covering eight counties, stretching from Lodi to Bishop to the Nevada border. The selection jury is composed of several architects that live and practice outside of our area, so as not to be partial to any particular project or style.
With a geographical area so broad and such a large lapse of time spread between awarding of projects, competition for these awards is tight.
