 | This photo of Paul Rudolph's Art & Architecture Building was taken shortly after the building opened in 1963. |
With major support from Sid Bass, Yale has undertaken the comprehensive renovation
and restoration of Paul Rudolph’s historic Art & Architecture Building.
T H I S
Restoration of iconic Rudolph building
is key step in creation of Arts Complex
In keeping with Bass’ wishes, the architectural landmark is being renamed
as “The Rudolph Building.”
This is a key step in the creation of the University’s major new arts complex,
a single structure that will include, in addition to The Rudolph Building, a
new facility for the Department of the History of Art, to be called the Jeffrey
Loria Center for the History of Art in honor of its chief benefactor, and an
expanded arts and architecture library, to be named the Robert B. Haas Family
Arts Library.
The project has been designed by Charles Gwathmey, of Gwathmey Siegel & Associates
Architects, who received his Master of Architecture degree from Yale in 1962,
while Rudolph was chair of the Department of Architecture.
The arts complex, scheduled for completion in 2008, is part of the Master Plan
for the Yale Arts Area, an initiative to expand and improve the University’s
arts facilities.
“Yale’s extraordinary arts programs have enabled students in all
subjects to expand their capacity for independent and creative thinking,” said
President Richard C. Levin. “When complete, Charles Gwathmey’s arts
complex will provide unprecedented opportunities for meaningful interchange between
Yale’s esteemed history of art department and School of Architecture. The
Jeffrey Loria Center for the History of Art will provide the Department of the
History of Art with a magnificent new home, and the Haas Family Arts Library
that will link the two buildings will serve as both a physical and intellectual
meeting place.
“The arts complex is thus a critical element of the Master Plan for the
Yale Arts Area and will contribute to the University’s continued leadership
in the arts,” added Levin.
Robert A.M. Stern, dean of the Yale School of Architecture, noted: “Paul
Rudolph was one of the most talented, inventive and important architects of the
last century, and the Art & Architecture Building is among his greatest achievements.
Thus, the restoration of this building is crucial not only to Yale, but to the
history of modern architecture in America. Moreover, Charles Gwathmey’s
design, carried out with both great sensitivity and a deep knowledge of Rudolph’s
aesthetic intentions, provides a valuable example to others who plan to restore
modernist structures, a subject of increasing importance today.”
Charles Gwathmey noted: “Working on a project as important as the renovation
and restoration of Paul Rudolph’s iconic Art & Architecture Building
is a privilege — one that carries with it enormous responsibility, not
only to the building itself and the people who will use it, but also to its rich
history and its architect’s vision. I have tried to honor that history
and vision by returning the building to Rudolph’s original intention. Additionally,
the design for the arts complex as a whole represents an expansion and enrichment
of the organizing principle of the Art & Architecture Building, while at
the same time establishing a separate and unique identity for the new Jeffrey
Loria Center for the History of Art.”
Creating the arts complex
In creating the arts complex, Gwathmey Siegel & Associates was charged with
several tasks. Primary among these were to restore Rudolph’s historic building — considered
a masterpiece of space, light and mass — to its original intention, and
to introduce state-of-the-art technology, air conditioning and LEED standards
to it; to design a new facility to serve Yale’s art history department,
ensuring a building with its own signature identity; to create an expanded arts
and architecture library with a street-level presence and entry; and to maintain
a harmonious relationship both among the elements of the arts complex and between
that multifaceted structure and the surrounding streetscape.
The resulting design calls for the Jeffery Loria Center for the History of Art
to be added to the north side of The Rudolph Building, with the Haas Family Arts
Library bridging both buildings.
Work on the Art & Architecture Building will include a mix of literal restoration,
interpretive renovation and sensitive intervention — all the while keeping
clear sight of Rudolph’s vision. Gwathmey’s design will restore open
spaces that have been fractured, revive vertical views that have long been blocked
by prior renovations and ill-placed partitions, recapture Rudolph’s concept
for the building’s fenestration and restore the exterior walls. The renovation
will also include complete restoration of the penthouse and rooftop terrace;
creation of an easily accessible entrance to the main lecture theater, Hastings
Hall; and installation of replacement windows that use contemporary technology
and materials. In addition, new lighting and furnishings will be introduced throughout
the building.
Other essential changes to the Art & Architecture Building will not be visible.
These include the introduction of air conditioning, for which the architects
are installing a state-of-the-art system, in keeping with the University’s
commitment to energy efficiency and sustainable construction. (The project has
a LEED rating of silver.)
The arts and architecture library will be vastly expanded and transformed, as
the University’s art-and-architecture and drama libraries and its arts
of the book collections — currently located in separate buildings across
campus — are integrated into a single, comprehensive resource. The new
Haas Family Arts Library will straddle the two buildings of the arts complex
at the ground-floor level.
Gwathmey has used the tower that once marked the north end of the Art & Architecture
Building to create a “fulcrum” between The Rudolph Building and the
Jeffery Loria Center for the History of Art. The design thus bridges old and
new literally, functionally, aesthetically and figuratively, notes the architect.
The addition will house the elevators, circulation, reception and lobby spaces
for both buildings.
The 87,000-square-foot, limestone-and-zinc-clad Jeffery Loria Center for the History of Art will include expanded teaching and
lecture spaces and student and faculty support facilities that will serve the
department for generations to come. Also included will be new gathering spaces
for students and faculty, including a street-level café that will be open
to the public, and outdoor terraces on the fourth and seventh floors, each offering
previously unavailable views of The Rudolph Building, as well as panoramic views
of the campus and city. One of the chief improvements provided by the new facility
is that — for the first time — the Department of the History of Art
will be housed in the same building as the arts library.
Upcoming projects
Other projects currently in the design stage as part of the Master Plan for the
Yale Arts Area include the following: renovation and addition to the Department
of Music’s Stoeckel Hall (Charney Architects LLC); renovation of the School
of Music’s Hendrie Hall (Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects); and
renovation of the Yale University Art Gallery’s Swartwout Building and
expansion into Street Hall, former home of the history of art department (Polshek
Partnership Architects).
Plans are also being formulated for new facilities to house the Yale School of
Drama and Yale Repertory Theatre.
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Campus Notes
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