In this episode, Cherise is joined by Ray Dovell, AIA, Founding Partner and Erica Gaswirth, AIA, Senior Associate at PBDW Architects in New York City. Ray and Erica share their experience working on The Cooke School & Institute in New York City. The new Cooke School is an uplifting design that elevates the experience of the special-needs students who call it home.

With abundant glazing and colored glass, the school is a bright and vibrant addition to the neighborhood. Channel glass lining the first floor illuminates the pavement during the evenings while providing privacy to the interior spaces. Evocative bay windows break down the long façade into a more human scale. They were sculpted in multiple directions to create visual interest and movement across the façade. The projection creates reading alcoves in the classrooms, furnished with millwork benches. Perched in the bay, students have open views, where they can feel like they are floating above the busy street below. To see project photos and details discussed, visit arcat.com/podcast

This project has unique challenges and opportunities – a unique program called for instructional spaces that are specific to Cooke’s pedagogy, unforeseen soil conditions required a complete redesign of the foundation during construction, standardized classrooms created efficiency for cost and construction, and much more.

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