December 8th, 2008 § Karynn
December 5th, 2008 § Karynn
Last night 3six0 received two awards from the Rhode Island AIA at its awards dinner. Here’s a brief description of each project:
Achilles – Honor Award
The clients approached 3six0 with an outside of the box concept: a store / restaurant / bar / gallery for a former warehouse space in Boston’s Fort Point Channel District. This unconventional problem demanded an innovative solution: instead of compartmentalizing the different programs in the deep but narrow space, 3six0 developed a design which allowed the different activities to overlap. Inspired by the strength of the concrete and steel industrial shell, we designed a system of 28 glass and steel merchandise cases riding on steel rails mounted to the ceiling. The cases roll open during the retail hours and agglomerate into clustered vaults at night; transforming the retail space into the extension of the bar/lounge beyond. The chef wanted flexibly sized tables, for the small, medium, large and extra large dishes of his menu. Groupings of 2-tops was an obvious solution, but the uneven existing floor caused uneven joints between the tables. We developed a rail system that supports the tabletops and allows them to slide and group.
Shepherd of the Valley – Honor Award
The construction of a new freestanding chapel is the first stage of expansion for the Shepherd of the Valley church. 3six0 developed a tectonic based on the concept of “spirare” (spirit), “inspirare” (breath) and “spiral”, expansion and contraction. The geometry of the ceiling/roof and floor spirals north setting the structure, windows, and ceiling/wall acoustic fins.
We are honored by the AIAri’s recognition and also congratulate our colleagues on their achievements from this past year. A full list of winners is available on their website.
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November 21st, 2008 § Karynn
One thing you may not know about our firm is that we have very close ties to RISD, the Rhode Island School of Design. The majority of our architects are RISD alumni and for everyone else who isn’t, they teach at the school. Current students also regularly intern in our offices during RISD’s winter session to help construct architectural models.
3six0 realizes how important students are to our firm and to the architecture profession as a whole, so we wanted to highlight a scholarship that is for them:
What: 3rd Annual IIDA New England Student Scholarship
Who: Rhode Island Interior Design Students
When: November 28, 2008
November 21st, 2008 § Karynn
Check out Blurb
Here at 3six0 we are pragmatic people. Portfolios with large glossy photos and text printed on heavyweight paper are eye-catching but expensive to produce. We could go the large production route and mass produce portfolios at once to keep down costs, but we’re a small firm and can’t afford to produce at that scale. Imagine our excitement when we discovered Blurb.com, a site that let’s you create your own book and then order copies a la carte. This model fits our needs perfectly since it is high quality at a low cost and allows us to order a portfolio book only when we need one. We also have complete control over how the book is designed and can update it to reflect our most current work. There’s also another nifty feature that let’s you sell your book on Blurb.
Coming to Blurb out of a practical business need, we never imagined that the website would choose to feature 3six0 on their Staff Picks. We are honored by their recommendation and hope that you’ll check out our Blurb book.
November 10th, 2008 § Karynn
A link from Land+Living led me to this article entitled, “Where Do America’s Happiest People Work?” Architects are fourth on the list with 53.5% reporting at very happy! I can tell you from working here at 3six0 that our architects are definitely part of that percentage, and I feel that it is largely do to the workspace. At 3six0 you will find no windowless, gray cubicles. Every desk has a window and the walls are broken down for an open and collaborative space. Music flows in steady streams through the speakers overhead, and inspiration from past projects is never more than a few feet away with architectural models occupying the shelves and desktops. Got a video or a catchy headline to share? Just speak up and people will rise from their desks to crowd around your monitor. It’s a friendly atmosphere and I enjoy working here.
November 7th, 2008 § Karynn
3six0 is proud to boast two premiere educational institutions as its neighbors; RISD, the Rhode Island School of Design, is a block from our office, and Brown University is right up the hill from downtown. This weekend Brown and RISD have come together to put on A Better World by Design conference. Over the next 3 days, students, educators, and professionals will examine the intersections of design and technology and look at ways in which the two are being married to improve our world and solve economic, environmental, and social problems.
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November 7th, 2008 § Karynn
3six0 recently unveiled its first church, which was created for the Shepherd of the Valley Church. On Wednesday, William Morgan over at the Providence Journal wrote a review of our work entitled, “A treasure of a new church.”
Morgan writes
Consecrated in October, the chapel is small and unassuming — an inexpensive addition to an ordinary church on a road far from “downtown.” Almost in spite of itself, the 60-seat chapel achieves a quality and dignity that fancier buildings with huge budgets rarely achieve.
. . .
[3six0] imagined the building as an endless spiral. The floor, ceiling, and tapering, slightly pitched walls — built of cedar and Brazilian mahogany — form a continuous container, almost as if the chapel interior were the inside of a wooden bowl made on a lathe. These details are as thoughtful as they are understated: Not obvious, they play on the subconscious and offer a slight tension, perhaps necessary when contemplating the metaphysical.
We are very appreciative to William Morgan and the ProJo for their review of our work.
November 3rd, 2008 § Karynn
Without trying to pat the firm on the back, I have to commend my fellow coworkers and bosses for taking this dive with me into the blogosphere. It is never easy to take something as unfamiliar and unregulated as blogging into the structure of a business. During the next few weeks, my fellow writers will likely push and prod the blog until they find their own comfort level with the medium. Having just joined this firm a few weeks back with relatively no architecture background, I’ve been drawn into their world – materials, designs, colors, textures – and am beginning to see, what I hope you will come to see, the world as seen by architects.
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