Articles by Joann Gonchar, FAIA

Mirror Mirror

March 25, 2013

The goal for Mirror—a new permanent installation on the facade of the Seattle Art Museum—was to create a “living system” that constantly changes in response to its surroundings, says its creator, artist Doug Aitken.

Owe'neh Bupingeh Preservation Project

Native American Homecoming.

Joann Gonchar, FAIA

March 16, 2013

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Not far from where the Chama River meets the Rio Grande, about 30 miles north of Santa Fe, the Ohkay Owingeh—one of 19 federally recognized Native American Pueblo tribes in New Mexico—live on land they have inhabited for at least 600 years.

Yale University Art Gallery Renovation and Expansion

Stitches in Time: A well-executed renovation, along with a few carefully conceived insertions, weaves together a museum’s trio of stylistically distinct landmarks.

Joann Gonchar, FAIA

February 15, 2013

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The Yale University Art Gallery (YUAG) is inaptly named. The word “gallery” doesn't convey the institution's size and its almost encyclopedic scope, with holdings that number more than 200,000 objects encompassing an array of eras, cultures, and media.

Barclays Center

Beauty and the Behemoth: SHoP deploys digital technology and imaginative design to give Brooklyn's Barclays Center unexpected civic presence.

Joann Gonchar, FAIA

December 16, 2012

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The gargantuan structure sits just beyond several neighborhoods of quaint brownstone rowhouses characteristic of this New York City borough.

Joann Gonchar, FAIA

November 28, 2012

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Forest City Ratner Companies (FCRC), developer of the $4.9 billion Atlantic Yards project in Brooklyn, New York, has officially announced today that the mixed-use complex’s first residential building—a 22-story, 350-unit, metal-and-glass-clad tower designed by SHoP Architects—will be built with modular methods. The developer has estimated that the modular structure, which will have a series of setbacks and cantilevers, will cost about 20 percent less than a nearly identical conventionally constructed tower. FCRC will partner with construction and development group, Skanska USA, to create FC + Skanska Modular. The new company will rely on union labor to assemble the components in

The Linde Center for Global Environmental Science by Architectural Resources Group

Pasadena, California

Joann Gonchar, FAIA

November 15, 2012

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Architectural Resources Group renovates a historic laboratory building in California, combining respect for the past with technical innovation and energy conservation.

Tower at PNC Plaza

Let the Fresh Air In: A tower offers an alternative to the hermetically sealed glass box

Joann Gonchar, FAIA

October 16, 2012

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At 33 stories and about 550 feet, PNC Financial Services Group's new headquarters in Pittsburgh will not break any records for its height.

Center for Sustainable Landscapes

How Green A Garden Grows: A Conservatory targets a certification trifecta.

Joann Gonchar, FAIA

October 16, 2012

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Pittsburgh is home to what is arguably one of the greenest buildings in the country: the Center for Sustainable Landscapes, a recently completed facility for research and educational programs on the campus of the 119-year-old Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens.

Joann Gonchar, FAIA

October 16, 2012

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Photo © Bruce Damonte Pittsburgh-based PNC Financial Services Group claims more green buildings than any other company in the world. Nationwide it has about 160 LEED projects, with several major ones on its home turf, including Three PNC Plaza (background), a glass-clad, 23-story mixed-use building by Gensler. When it opened in 2009, it was the first tower completed in the downtown core in more than two decades. The building has three programmatic elements'a hotel, condominiums, and office space'with separate but interconnected lobbies. It overlooks Market Square (foreground), a recently renovated public space surrounded by restaurants and retail that was the

Joann Gonchar, FAIA

October 16, 2012

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Photo © Brad Feinknopf The sweeping roof of Rafael Vi'oly's David L. Lawrence Convention Center (below) echoes Pittsburgh's 'Three Sisters' bridges. When it opened in 2003, the LEED Gold, 1.5 million-square-foot facility was the world's largest green building. Earlier this year, the convention center earned a Platinum rating for its operations and maintenance practices as part of the LEED-EBOM program, making it the first convention center with certification for both new construction and existing buildings. In 2011, a waterfront plaza in front of the building (bottom) was completed, extending an existing shoreline trail for pedestrians and cyclists. The park, designed