Dec 1, 2026
LOT-EK lectures at RIT Vignelli Center, Rochester
concept & vision
a fine arts museum and a public library at the entrance of a large park
design & architecture
our building volume is a parallelogram of approximately 1,620 shipping containers made out of two rotationally symmetrical triangles--like two fish head-to-tail, or the elements of the Yin-Yang symbol. In cross-section, one of the triangular halves, the library, is lifted to create a true gateway into the park and to form a sheltered and shady plaza below, with public entrances to both museum and library
program & use
both library and museum are organized around inverted central atriums. The library atrium steps outwards, like a terraced hillside, as it approaches the roof, bringing daylight into the central reading room. The museum atrium steps upward, like a dome, towards an oculus skylight. While the ground-level plaza offers a shady “day plaza” for a subtropical climate, the rooftop garden offers a “night plaza” for cinema and summer evenings
impact & significance
two mirrored volumes offer two related though radically different spaces and spatial experiences
