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By the way archi-tecture is overlooked and ignored by the majority of people; you would think that there were no interest-ing projects out there. One reason for this is the design and ar-chitectural community are too self-centered. Another reason is for architecture falling out of the consciousness of the public is its speed. Architecture fi rst ex-ists in the heads of

architects, is later presented to clients and then is built many years later. The goal of S P A C E S is to integrate architecture, urban design and design into the rest of the arts and the creative world. This approach is rooted

in the principles of Modernism and offers an op-portunity to introduce architecture to people and explore architecture and urban design. S P A C E S is one of the re-occurring articles in Unixpozed™. Unixpozed™ is dedicated to discovering interest-ing people, places, things and presenting talented people.

Firm Profi le:“Founded in 1972, Morphosis is an interdisciplinary practice in-volved in rigorous design and research that yields innovative, iconic buildings and urban environments. With founder Thom Mayne serving as design director, the fi rm today consists of a group of more than 50 professionals, who remain committed to the practice of architecture as a collaborative enterprise. With projects world-wide, the fi rm’s work ranges in scale from residential, institutional, and civic buildings to large urban planning projects. Named after the Greek term, morphosis, meaning to form or be in formation, Morphosis is a dynamic and evolving practice that responds to the shifting and advancing social, cultural, political and technological conditions of modern life. Over the past 30 years, Morphosis has received 25 Progressive Architecture awards, 75 American Institute of Architects (AIA) awards, and numerous other honors.”

Thomas Mayne, Design Director and leader of Morphosis:With Morphosis, Mayne has been the recipient of the 2005 Pritzker Architecture Prize, 25 Progressive Architecture Awards, 75 American Institute of Architecture Awards and numerous other design recognitions. Under Mayne’s direction, the fi rm has been the subject of various group and solo exhibitions through-out the world, including a large solo exhibition at the Centre Pompidou in Paris in 2006. Other notable exhibitions include those at the Contemporary Art Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, the Walker Arts Institute in Minneapolis, the Ministerio de Fomento in Madrid in 1998, and a major retrospective at the Netherlands Architectural Institute (NAI) in 1999.

In addition to these solo exhibitions, Morpho-sis has been included in prestigious group exhibi-tions in Tokyo, London, Vienna, Buenos Aires, at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, as part of the “End of the Century: 100 Years of Architecture” exhibition, and at the 2002, 2004 and 2006, and 2008 Venice Architecture Bien-nales. Drawings, furniture, and models produced by Morphosis are included in

the permanent collections of such institutions as the MOMA in New York, San Francisco MOMA, the MAK in Vienna, The Israel Museum in Jerusalem, and the FRAC Center in France. Morphosis buildings and projects have been published extensively; the fi rm has been the subject of 25 monographs, including fi ve by Rizzoli, two by Korean Architect, two by El Croquis (Spain), two by G.A. Japan, and one by Phaidon.

Throughout his career, Mayne has remained active in the academic world. In 1972, he helped to found the Southern California Institute of Architecture. Since then, he has held teaching positions at Columbia, Yale (the Eliel Saarinen Chair in 1991), the Harvard Graduate School of Design (Eliot Noyes Chair in 1998), the Berlage Institute in the Netherlands, the Bartlett School of Architecture in London, and many other institutions around the world. His commitment to the education of young designers has not wa-vered. Currently, he holds a tenured faculty position at the UCLA School of Arts and Architecture.

Morphosis’s design for 40 Cooper Square, is noticeable from blocks away because of a very graphic architectural design, the neutral gray tone of the building skin and the contrast of architectural lines to the NYC streetscape. The fi rst thing that catches the eye about this building is the abstract/diagram-matic/graphic void on the facade facing Cooper Square. The folding, stainless steel screens on this fa-cade break near the center to create the central opening of this facade. Natural light fl oods the build-ing through this opening. Within this graphic shape, the curtain wall/glass wall folds reinforcing the design. When you get closer to the building, you discover another scale of the design. Sharp angles create concrete ramps, angled columns, mullions (structure for windows) which are not visible from far

distances because they are recessed from the main mass of the building. The streetscape is somewhat busy, but contributes to the lively square in lower Manhattan. More than likely, there will be skaters riding and grinding on parts of the building. Directly above the entrance, there is an interesting solu-tion for the buildings signage. The letters “40 Cooper Square” are cut out of an awning and are truly only legible from one place (across the street).

I am sure some architects will not like this building because it is identifi ably a Morphosis building or it looks too much like some of Morphosis’ other designs. This does not matter to me because this building is interesting, successful, consistent, and respectful and only adds to the neighborhood and city. I con-sider the design consistent because the design follows through on several scales. The building fi ts well within its context. Macro design is eye catching and engages Cooper Square and as far as the eye can see and the design of the entrance is appropriate for the street. It makes you want to see the building from every angle.

Usually, when interior of buildings are designed by the architect that designed the exterior, the scale of the interior design relates to the exterior. Sometimes this can overpower or make people uncomfortable. 40 Cooper Square creates a grand scale because it is an institutional building. The relationship of the interior scale to the exterior, keeps you aware of the size of the building and Cooper Square as a result. Whether that’s a good thing depends on who you are talking to. This is evident by seeing into the lobby. SInce 40 Cooper Square is not open to the public yet, I did not have the opportunity to photograph and wander inside the building. When the build-ing opens, I photograph it and follow up to this with part two.