Richard Meier’s Teacher Village project is essentially a little village, like the name states, with three charter schools, small to mid-scale retail stores, and housing for teachers. All of the classrooms are designed with many windows to let in natural light. Much like many of Meier’s projects, this building is no different in that it features a lot of light colors such as white with elegant lighting. It is also worth noting that the project is in Newark, New Jersey. And, in the area, there is a zoning code that doesn’t allow buildings to be over 60 feet tall, so this building fits that mold. This is just simply a cool project as it really looks like it would be a great place to send your kids to school and also extremely convenient for teachers to live in.

Designed by Richard Meier, the OCT Shenzhen Clubhouse is located in Shenzhen, China, and was completed in 2008. Like many of Meier’s projects, the clubhouse is very lightly colored and white with elegant use of lighting. The entrance of the building has a really cool waterfall with clean night lighting surrounding the building that really makes the colors and elements pop out at you. The building is located on an artificial island, and inside it features a fitness center, pool, multi-purpose area, restaurant, and a gallery among several other things.  What really caught my attention was the geometry of the building. It’s just very unique and clean looking in a difficult to describe way. Ultimately, I think the lighting and geometry of the OCT Shenzhen Clubhouse are what make it so unique and interesting.

The 685 First Avenue building designed by Richard Meier was completed in 2015. Standing 42 stories and 460 feet high, the building houses 556 rental properties. The building has a unique architectural cutout on the 27th and 28th floors which really caught my attention. While I am by no means an expert, I don’t remember ever seeing anything quite like this. The building really brings together lighting and geometry to form a very elegant and impressive appearance. The building also over looks the river in New York City which is pretty sick. All of the apartment rooms inside the building are intended to be very open which maximizes the views of the city and river. Overall, the building looks very elegant and really catches the eye at first glance.

Richard Meier is a famous architect. In this post I want to discuss the Engel & Volkers Headquarters and Apartments located in Hamburg, Germany. The building was finished in 2012 and over looks a body of water. The building is very light in color being mostly white, which matches very well with the surrounding landscape. Upon first glance, I thought the building was beautiful. Inside the building there are lightly colored wood floors and white walls with elegant lighting. The outside of the building is also surrounded by a large amount of glass windows. This is supposed to portray the image of transparency. Additionally, the interior of the building is occupied by primarily offices and apartments. With buildings like this I see why Meier is one of the most widely known architects in the world.

One building that has recently made an impact on me is The Collective in Oklahoma City. It is extremely modern and just opened this year, but I found it so unique that I had to write about it. The Collective is essentially a fancy food court. There are 11 restaurants, a bar, 95 person patio, and outdoor seating area here. I drove by The Collective about a month ago and actually went back to eat here last week just because it really caught my eye. For a lack of better words,  I’ve never quite seen such a nice food court. It is very open and modern. At night the lights in and surrounding the building are very unique. The rooftop patio really caught my attention, and it is not uncommon to see a live band performing here on busy nights either. The significance of The Collective for me was that it was one of the few public places I have ever simply driven by and been taken back by. It’s not a large place, but it appears to really draw in people creating a great community atmosphere. Additionally, The Collective is somewhat of a representation of the great new places being built in OKC. It truly is a growing city, and it seems like another great public place gets built every time I visit Oklahoma City.

One building that has been a huge influence in shaping me as not only a student, but also a person was my high school. Cascia Hall is located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It is a Catholic Augustinian School that was built in the 1920s. After being built it was an all male boarding school until the 1980s when the school became a co-ed non-boarding school. That being said, I essentially grew up in this building. I attended school, studied, participated in school activities and sports, and formed many friendships that I still have today and likely always will. Other than the actual house I grew up in, this building was the most significant part of my life during my teen years. Upon first glance I remember thinking that the school looked very much like Hogwarts, and it somewhat does. The main high school building is very old, and it shows. But, this doesn’t mean it isn’t nice. In fact, the building has a ton of character. Such as the heavy and old, but sturdy wooden doors. Additionally, the outside is composed of uniquely layered bricks that appear crooked and protruding. However, this is by design. In fact, I have yet to ever see another building with brickwork like Cascia Hall. The floors are made of an old, consistent marble type material. Essentially everything in the building is old except for some newer additions, but it was built right and is still sturdily and beautifully standing today.

The CityPlex Towers, located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, can be seen from miles away. They are some of the tallest, most beautiful buildings in outside appearance located in Tulsa which to some might not say much. The towers were originally built to be a Christian hospital called City of Faith Medical and Research Center. However, these plans fell through, and the towers are mostly empty or occupied by offices now. Nevertheless, these towers are extremely important to me due to a smaller, mostly outpatient, surgical center called Oklahoma Surgical Hospital being located inside.  Not only did I undergo four surgeries inside these towers in the span of about two years, I also had my first job here. So, the towers are a representation of both good and bad times during my life. The first two things I ever noticed about the towers were their height and the gold color. Upon walking into the main lobby I was taken back by the waterfall and incredibly high ceilings. The Oklahoma Surgical Hospital part of the CityPlex Towers is similar to many hospitals, but has a very elegant waiting room. The surgical rooms are however very similar to most hospitals. That being said, this structure has had great significance in my life.

One building which I would like to reflect upon is First United Methodist church in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I was born and raised in Tulsa, and this has been my church ever since I can remember. It holds a special place in my heart as I have spent many times, both good and bad, here. The architecture of the building is truly beautiful which makes spending time here even more enjoyable. As a child in church on Sundays I remember many times looking around the church admiring, among many things, the stained glass windows at the very front and the detailed pillars surrounding the pews in the middle. The church may not be new, but I could tell just how well built it was by the two inviting yet secure front doors even from an early age. Overall, this church has been a huge influence in my life whether it be as a place of worship, contemplation, or fun at Sunday school. I truly believe that my experience with this church would have been different had it not been for its impactful architecture.