PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

AIA Newark and Suburban Architects A Section of AIA New Jersey

AIA New Jersey is a Chapter and Region of the American Institute of Architects

DECEMBER 2012

Issue 12

The Rostrum

Official newsletter of the

Newark & Suburban

Section of AIA-NJ

Published monthly

Submit events, case

studies, photos, comments,

or other content for

consideration to:

aiansrostrum@gmail.com

President’s Message 1

Professional Practice 2

Design Awards 2012 3

The Next Generation 4

Dessert Build is coming!!!

5

CANstruction 6

Architects as Artists

Exhibition 8

Inside this issue: events this year successful.

I would especially like to

thank Julie Pagnotta, our

Section Administrator for her

support. It cannot be said

enough that our section

would not run as smoothly

as it does if not for Julie’s

help and support. She

b r i n g s a l e v e l o f

p r o f e s s i o n a l i s m a n d

enthusiasm to every task

and the success of our

events are the proof of her

hard work.

I would also like to thank

Judy Donnelly, AIA for her

commitment to Newark and

Suburban. Judy is a Past

President and has completed

her term on the board in

2012. I wish Judy well as

she continues her hard work

with AIA-NJ in 2013.

Newark and Suburban has

profited from her dedication

and support in recent years

and I know she will continue

to be involved in the future –

her devotion for our

organization is too strong.

I would also like to take this

final opportunity to thank

Virginia Seminara, AIA.

Virginia is the editor of our

In the aftermath of

Hurricane Sandy I hope you

have returned your homes,

businesses and lives back to

normal. Many saw a slow

return to their everyday life

after many days without

power. Others, with

damage to their homes and

offices, will find a much

more sluggish return. My

heart goes out to all those

affected. I hope that as

architects we can prove our

worth by stepping up in this

challenging time to help

others as I know many of

you already have. The one

heartwarming lesson learned

after the storm was how we

all rise to a challenge and

support each other in

difficult times.

As we reach the end of the

year, I hope we can all look

to the Holiday Season as a

time for some much needed

cheer. The end of the year

also means the end of my

term as President of Newark

and Suburban. I would like

to thank all of the board

members and committee

chairs that committed their

time to help make the

Newark and Suburban

Rostrum and has dedicated

her time to putting together

a newsletter I think has

become a valuable tool. I

hope she continues her

enthusiasm in 2013 to build

a bigger and better Rostrum

each month.

Finally, I was truly honored

to serve as President and I

wish the best of luck to

Louise Addonizio, AIA in

2013. I know the Newark

and Suburban board and the

committee chairs wil l

support Louise in her term

as President. I look forward

to seeing you at our General

Meeting on December 5th

and at the Past President’s

Banquet on January 19th.

Happy Holidays.

Kevin McCormick, AIA,

LEED®AP

AIANS President, 2012

Rostrum 2012 Issue 12

Page 2

AIA Newark & Suburban

Board Members

Officers

KEVIN McCORMICK, AIA

President

LOUISE ADDONIZIO, AIA

President-Elect

JOHN A. CWIKLA, AIA

First Vice President

LISA SAN FILIPPO, AIA

Secretary

STEPHEN ROONEY, AIA

Treasurer

YOGESH MISTRY, AIA

Past President

Trustees

Trustee 2012

JUDY DONNELLY, AIA

Trustees 2013

CHRISTY DIBARTOLO, AIA

ALEX GOTTHELF,AIA

BILL MUNOZ, ALLIED

MEMBER

NATASHA SUZANSKY, AIA

Trustees 2014

PAUL TIAJOLOFF, AIA

RONALD WESTON, AIA

JASON PEIST, ASSOC. AIA

Honorary Affiliate

DAN BISCHOFF

Section Administrator

JULIE PAGNOTTA

aiaadmin@verizon.net

AIA NS 2012 Committees

Joint Design Awards 2012 a Success This year’s 19th annual

Newark and Suburban Design Awards, a special

joint awards event with the Architects League, featured

forty-six projects submitted by twenty-eight firms from

our two sections. After serious deliberation the

jurors - Bruce D. Turner, AIA

(President - South Jersey), , Rafael Da Silva, AIA (VP –

Jersey Shore), Robert W. O’Reilly, AIA (President -

West Jersey), Thomas Navin, AIA, and J. Robert

Hillier, FAIA – selected fifteen projects for awards.

The following is a list of the

awarded projects with some of the jurors’ comments:

Residential – Un-Built Silver Medal: Kennedy-

Grant Valley House This entry was commended

by the jurors for its watercolor presentation and

clarity of plan.

Residential - Built Silver Medal: Stonewater

Architecture LLC - Gardner Residence

Commended by the jury panel for the beautiful

execution and detailing and how the plans are resolved

on all levels.

Bronze Medal: Seth A. Leeb Architect - “New”

Addition The jurors lauded this

project for its fine level of detail and how the addition

blends into and is hard to detect in the overall scheme

of the project.

Honorable Mention: Kennedy-Grant - Country

House This entry was selected for

the high level of detail and its execution.

Non-Residential – Un-Built Gold Medal: Gruskin

Architecture + Design, P.C. -

Kean University Green Lane

Building The jurors chose this project

for a gold medal for its “exhuberance” and the

manner in which the project stands out in its context and

for how the upper portion “comes alive.” The jurors

also praised how each level

of the façade is differentiated by showing the different

activities taking place within. Silver Medal: RSC

Architects Career Technical High School

The jurors admired this design’s radiating plan and

the manner in which its

different elements reach out into the landscape like

fingers and in turn pull the landscape into the project.

The jurors also praised the project’s addressing of

sustainable issues and for being a positive statement

for school design in New

Jersey. Bronze Medal: Poskanzer

Skott Architects - Mediacom Communications

The jurors commended this entry for its ability to make a

statement for the client’s corporate image and the

high level of skill and craft

shown in the plans and details.

Non-Residential - Built

Gold Medal: Arcari & Iovino Architects, P.C. - Korean

Presbyterian Church The jurors selected this

project for a gold medal, praising its “eye-pooping

façade” and for the interplay of different volumes and for

the way the building engages

the site. Silver Medal: Pallante

Design - The Pataki Center The jurors lauded this

project for its transformative nature and the skill level

demonstrated in the details and fenestration and for how

the trellis and masonry

detailing help to modulate the scale of the project. The

jurors also praised the use of diagrams in the presentation.

Bronze Medal: The Biber Partnership - Early Research

Learning Academy - The panel was impressed by the

subtle aspects of this design

and how the simple plan, set on a corner site, reveals the

staircase as its centerpiece. Non-Residential Interiors

Gold Medal: Gensler – Hotel Lola

Praised for the project’s high level of craft and detail, the

jurors commended this entry

for its high level of elegance and said they” could imagine

Continued on page 3

Rostrum 2012 Issue 12

Page 3

sitting at the bar and enjoying

the evening.” Silver Medal: Gensler -

Turner Construction Company The jurors selected this entry

for the clarity of the design and the high level of

materiality in its use of wood, carpet, and stone.

Non-Residential Featured

Element Gold Medal: Marchetto

Higgins Stieve AIA – Apse – Traction

This gold medal-awarded project was commended by

the jury for the skill and craft required to create the dynamic

and sculptural form on the end

of the building and the transformative effect it has on

the existing building. Silver Medal: CTS Group

Architecture/Planning PA - Music Court Pavilions

Design Awards 2012 This entry was lauded by the

jurors for the project’s metaphysical nature, which is

expressed by the trellis columns that seem to be

wrapped in the bark of a tree. The panel also admired the

“enchanting” effect produced by a special level of detail.

Bronze Medal: Fallon +

Pacheco Architects – Weill Cornell Medical College – Main

Corridor Improvements Praised by the panel for how,

through the architects’ skill and care, the existing space is

transformed from a dreadful one to a lively one which

enhances the lives of those

using the spaces. In addition, attendees of the

event had the opportunity to vote for their favorite project

in the Peer Vote, and the

Continued from page 2

following are the top vote-

getters:

Marchetto Higgins Stieve Apse – Traction

Gensler - Hotel Lola Arcari & Iovino Architects,

P.C. - Korean Presbyterian Church

On behalf of my co-chair Stacey Ruhle Kliesch, we

would like to thank all of the participating member firms of

AIA Newark and Suburban and the Architects League for

taking the time and effort to show the work they are proud

to have done as Architects and

making the 2012 Design Awards a success.

Donald Chin

2012 Design Awards Co-Chairperson

Clockwise from top left:

Arcari & Iovino Architects, P.C. Korean Presbyterian Church Oakland, NJ

Marchetto Higgins Stieve Apse – Traction, Hoboken, NJ

Gensler - Hotel Lola, New York

Rostrum 2012

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create a backbone structure

while the metallic elements in the paint offer hints of glow

from within.” (Arthur Paxton) Philip Kennedy-Grant’s palette

-knife, abstract rendering of a landscape has a finished,

authoritative feel. It is complete. The colors are rich

and pleasing. Nothing needs

to be changed. (George Saj)

There are approximately 54 various kind of art work,

submitted by 15 architects. The exhibit will run through

December 15. See photos of the opening reception here.

Architects as Artists

for the loneliness in our

internet culture. Then again, it might have been accidental.

Either way it is an interesting image. (George Saj )

Silver”: Katrina Kisza: “Girl

and Boy” “The curves and circular lines

in the double portrait are a

unifying element that brings harmony and grace. Even so,

two different personalities or temperaments are portrayed,

inviting speculation about t h e i r c h a r a c t e r ’ s

relationship.” (Arthur Paxton) The pensive gaze in the eyes

of the two figures establishes

a mood into which the viewer is drawn. The tentative pencil

strokes enhance that feeling and establ ish rapport.

(George Saj )

Gold: Philip Kennedy-Grant: “After hours”

“The abs t rac t acry l i c

encourages the eye to move and relate the irregular

shapes. Horizontal lines

The exhibition opened to rave

reviews: Here are the awards and

comments from the jurors. Bronze: Bogdan Seredyak:

“Volcanic Road” “Each of the three award

winners drew me in and made me wonder. The

photograph’s central figure,

wearing tight leggings in a desolate landscape recalls

19th century images of British explorers in Egypt and

beyond, yet this must be a modern day scene by a

photographer among us now. The trail or pathway conveys

both movement and depth as

it follows the terrain down, than back up and around. I

wondered about the barely noticeable character in the

lower left, and of course the m i s t a d d e d t o t h e

mystery.” (Arthur Paxton) This little photograph is a

haunting image of a lone

figure in an empty landscape that can serve as a metaphor

At the CLIFTON ARTS CENTER – through DECEMBER 15

Jurors: Arthur Paxton, George Saj and Hugh Boyd after the review of works at

the Clifton Arts Center

Rostrum 2012 Issue 12

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