University of Iowa Visual Arts Building

Iowa City, IA, USA

Project details
Client

University Of Iowa

Architect

BNIM/Steven Holl Architects

Duration

Completed in 2016

Services provided by Buro Happold

Structural engineering

The new Visual Arts Building at the University of Iowa was designed to replace the original 1930’s building that was severely damaged by floods in 2008.

The new facility provides studio space for ceramics, sculpture, metal work, photography, print-making, and 3D multimedia, as well as graduate student studios, faculty and staff offices, and gallery space.

Challenge

Buro Happold provided structural engineering for this ambitious building. As digital techniques have forged new relationships across the arts, the architect has placed interconnectivity and crossover at the heart of the design. The main challenge came in realizing the architect’s aim to construct the Visual Arts Building purely using concrete.

cultural venue academic building university campus
A key aim was to encourage greater interaction between the different departments. This is reflected in the design’s emphasis on interconnection and crossover. Image: Iwan Baan

Solution

The internal spaces within the building were designed to reflect the need for connectivity between students, with floors shaped to encourage meeting and discussion. Seven vertical cutouts, encased in glass to further promote transparency between students and staff, provide visual links between the building’s four levels.

In response to the architect’s challenge to use concrete as the sole material in the structure, we produced a complex model of the building that allowed us to analyze the various loads that would be imposed on it. Our engineers proposed the use of a ‘bubble’ or void slab deck, which incorporates plastic discs within voids in the concrete slab that reduce its weight without compromising its overall strength.

We were able to demonstrate to the architect and our client that this was the best way to meet both the strength and aesthetic criteria required.

Jamie Chung, Associate

Value

By applying our expertise and experience to devise a number of innovative solutions in response to the unique situations posed by this project, Buro Happold played an intrinsic part in realizing an iconic new Visual Arts Building for the University of Iowa.

Awards

2018

ACI Excellence in Concrete Construction Awards – First Place, Low-Rise Buildings

2017

AIA New York Design Awards Honor Award

2016

Architect’s Newspaper Best of Design Awards – Building of the Year, Midwest

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