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Home , Jean Nouvel, Renzo Piano, Zaha Hadid

Razzle-Dazzle

The future of the architectural THE BEST-KNOWN are very well-known indeed. profession rests on more than is an international by- word for eye-popping design; Michael eye-catching design. Graves has achieved the status of a household name, thanks to his product design for Target; and I. M. Pei, although retired, is still most people’s idea of a master . The work of each is quite different: Gehry regularly produces buildings that look like big sculptures; Graves’ colorful version of postmodernism is instantly recogniza - ble; and Pei has been a geometrical minimalist throughout his long career, WITOLD RYBCZYNSKI most recently in the Museum of Islamic

THE WHARTON REAL ESTATE REVIEW, VOL. XIV, NO. 1, SPRING 2010 Art in . There are many more SIGNATURE BUILDINGS architectural stars than these three. Norman Foster and are The unusual increase in the number of perhaps the most versatile, responsible architects whose names are recognized by for airports, , stadiums, the public is the result of media attention bridges, and museums. Foster’s latest and client demand. After the phenomenal work in the United States is an opera success of Frank Gehry’s photogenic house in ; Piano is designing his Guggenheim (Figure 1), which umpteenth American museum expan - opened in 1997 and became an instant sion, in Boston. Foster and Piano are international tourist destination, other art associated with the so-called high-tech museums strove to emulate what became style, producing buildings that are known as the Bilbao Effect. Iconic build - thoughtfully planned, meticulously ings, it was argued, increased attendance engineered, cleanly detailed, and care - and assisted in fund-raising; for failing fully constructed. The French architect cities, they stimulated urban renewal. The is less predictable; a sky - results did not always bear out these aspi - scraper in Barcelona looks like a shim - rations; nevertheless the allure of the mering silo, another one proposed for Bilbao Effect proved irresistible—and New York resembles a glass stalagmite. spread wide to other cultural institutions likewise varies his such as symphony orchestras and public designs—a library in Seattle resembles a libraries. Department stores built signature greenhouse, and a theater in Dallas an buildings to attract shoppers, and universi - opaque box. Swiss architects Jacques ties hired high-profile architects to Herzog and Pierre de Meuron are mini - please—or attract—donors. New or lesser- malists, but they tailor their designs to known universities hoped that the atten - the job at hand: an Olympic stadium in dant publicity would raise enrollments. that recalls a bird’s nest, a muse - Even established educational institutions um in in a copper- were prepared to go out on an architectur - sheathed box, and a football stadium in al limb in order to reinforce their image as Munich that looks like an inner-tube. an up-to-date patron of the arts, as MIT Robert A. M. Stern, who has recently did in recently commissioning two iconic built both an all-glass modernist office buildings. tower for Comcast and a traditional The publicity value of an iconic build - brick Georgian campus center for the ing was particularly effective when the Harvard Business School, is an eclectic. architect had a distinctive personal

THE WHARTON REAL ESTATE REVIEW, VOL. XIV, NO. 1, SPRING 2010 Figure 1: Bilbao Guggenheim (Frank O. Gehry & Associates and IDOM, architects)

Photo: Samuel Negredo style—jagged crystals for Daniel The unexpected rise to prominence of Libeskind, skeletal forms for Santiago some architects is also a result of the Calatrava, zoomy shapes for . changed nature of the modern building The signature building phenomenon also process. Large buildings are challenging to proved attractive to developers, who dis - design and build not only because of their covered that the name of a well-known size, as in the case of an airport or a con - architect could be a marketing tool. In vention center, but also because of their the , Gerald Hines had worked complexity. Myriad issues must be with architects such as , I. addressed: structure, environmental M. Pei, and César Pelli to produce Class- impact, energy conservation, mechanical A office buildings—so-called trophy systems, communications, lighting, buildings—whose architectural quality acoustics, security, and movement (in tall was part of their appeal and translated buildings, elevators are a sub-specialty by into higher rents. The signature building themselves). The architect risks losing his phenomenon is slightly different. The traditional role as master builder and being appearance of the building is only part of absorbed into a crowd of experts, becom - the attraction. The recognizable name of ing merely a sort of stylist. Although build - the star architect is the other. ings are designed by teams consisting of

THE WHARTON REAL ESTATE REVIEW, VOL. XIV, NO. 1, SPRING 2010 scores of specialists, the process always and Merrill, and RTKL. According to the begins with the client and a small group American Institute of Architects, almost around a table. How has the architect 80 percent of AIA member-owned archi - ensured a place at that table? tecture firms had fewer than ten employees Some architects have gained a place— as of the end of 2008, with just 2 percent even an important place—by focusing on of firms reporting 100 or more employees. design, staking out the creative domain The largest 2 percent of firms accounted and leaving technical concerns to consult - for 30 percent of all employment and ants. In this strategy, they are emulating more than a third of all billings. Large the success of fashion designers such as firms are able to expand their array of serv - Yves St. Laurent, Giorgio Armani, and ices to cover more of the building process, Karl Lagerfeld, who have translated their adding engineers and project managers to status as couturiers to the mass-market their staffs, for example, offering program - with a wide assortment of consumer prod - ming and post-occupancy energy moni - ucts: clothing, perfume, eye-glasses, lug - toring, and specializing in so-called green gage, and home furnishings. An analogous design. This expansion has brought not emphasis on the designer architect has only a high level of technical competency brought popular recognition to many and the resources to pursue innovation in individuals, which, in a celebrity-obsessed ways not previously available to architects, age, has translated into a real sort of power. but also institutional continuity and finan - The attendant publicity is not entirely for - cial value. (Norman Foster recently sold a tuitous, of course: most large design offices minority share of Foster + Partners, which now have a public relations department to he founded in 1967, to a invest - promote and disseminate the image—and ment group.) What might be called the brand—of the star architect. “design-as-problem-solving” model of The opposite architectural response to architectural practice has also been adopt - dealing with complexity has been to ed by mid-size design-oriented firms such embrace it. Not many people have heard as William Rawn Associates in Boston, of Art Gensler, who in 1965 co-founded which Architect magazine recently named the architectural firm that is now the the top architectural firm in the country largest firm in the world (more than 3,000 (Figure 2); KieranTimberlake Architects in employees before the recession, and about Philadelphia, which received the AIA 2008 2,000 today). Only a handful of American Architecture Firm Award; and Diamond + firms are of comparable size, among them Schmitt in , which was recognized HOK, Perkins & Will, Skidmore Owings in 2009 by Deloitte, the Canadian

THE WHARTON REAL ESTATE REVIEW, VOL. XIV, NO. 1, SPRING 2010 Figure 2: ’62 Center for Theater and Dance, Williams College (William Rawn Associates, architects)

Imperial Bank of Commerce, KPMG, and type of building that the client requires. the Queen’s University School of Business The architect’s firm may be simply too as being one of the fifty best-managed small to produce construction documents companies in Canada. and construction administration required for a large and complex project. A com - mon solution is to pair design architects EXECUTIVE ARCHITECTS with local, production-oriented firms. The design architect develops the design, Clients wishing to build signature build - and the production architect does ings often face a quandary. The architec - everything else: preparing construction tural star may be based in another city— documents, engaging the sub-consult - or another country—and may be unfa - ants, and managing the building process. miliar with local conditions, building (This distinction has long been institu - codes, and construction practices. tionalized in some European countries Moreover, not all star architects have a such as Spain and , where bureaux wealth of practical experience, nor do d’études prepare building designs and they necessarily have expertise with the then pass them on to bureaux d’études

THE WHARTON REAL ESTATE REVIEW, VOL. XIV, NO. 1, SPRING 2010 techniques , who prepare construction Architects), Blue Building (Bernard documents and supervise construction.) Tschumi with SLCE Architects), IAC The production firm also acts as architect Building (Gehry Partners with Adamson of record, assuming professional liability Associates), 100 11th Avenue (Jean for the technical aspects of the building. Nouvel with Beyer Blinder Belle), the New The architectural fee is divided between York Times Building (Renzo Piano the two firms, with the production archi - Building Workshop with FXFowle), and tect usually getting 50 percent or more. the Hearst Tower (Foster + Partners with The design architect/production archi - Gensler) (Figure 3). The division between tect model is relatively recent. Before the design firms and production firms is not 1980s, it was rare for leading design firms hard and fast. Firms may switch roles, to associate with production firms. The depending on the project—an executive firm of , for example, which architect on one project may be the design built all over the United States in the 1950s and 1960s, generally did all the Figure 3: Hearst Tower, New York (Foster + work itself (although it did associate with Partners and Gensler, architects) local firms in the case of U.S. embassies in London and ). During the 1960s and 1970s, the I. M. Pei firm, which was also active nationally, likewise rarely felt the need to associate with local architects. But by the 1980s, it was not unusual for nationally recognized design firms to have local associates, which allowed the design firm to undertake more projects without enlarging its office. The associated archi - tect was usually called the “executive archi - tect,” reflecting the fact that the manage - ment of the job was in his hands. Most recent high-profile building projects in have seen a pairing of design architects with executive architects: 15 Central Park West (Robert A. M. Stern Architects with SLCE Architects), The Centurion (I. M. Pei with SLCE

THE WHARTON REAL ESTATE REVIEW, VOL. XIV, NO. 1, SPRING 2010 architect on another (FXFowle was the unclear that splitting responsibilities has full-service architect of the Condé Nast any economic benefits to clients in terms Building on Times Square), and design of lower fees. While clients may believe architects may act as their own executive that limiting the work of high-profile— architects (as Gehry Partners has done on and expensive—architectural stars is eco - Beekman Street Tower). nomically advantageous, they should bear There are other reasons for dividing in mind three factors: the design architect design and technical responsibilities on a may not prepare the construction docu - project. An executive architect might ments, but his fee will—and should— secure a commission and desire to associate cover the time required to review con - with a high-profile design firm, or vice struction documents and shop drawings to versa, a design firm without a local pres - make sure that the original design inten - ence, or unfamiliar with local legal and tions are being implemented; the executive technical issues, might desire a local part - architect’s fees will reflect the extra risk of ner. For certain specialized building types taking legal responsibility for another such as laboratories, hospitals, and high- architect’s work; and with two firms there rise buildings, there might be a benefit to will be an inevitable overlap in the work, combining firms with complementary skill which will also add to the cost. sets. In the case of architectural competi - One disadvantage to the design archi - tions, creating a team that pairs a local firm tect/executive architect model is that it with an out-of-towner, or a large estab - assumes that design and production can be lished firm with a hot “boutique” design neatly divided. This is often not the case. firm, is a common practice. Good design is often based on particular Many clients see pairing design archi - construction details. Rising budgets often tects with executive architects as back- result in so-called value engineering, that stopping unpredictable creative talent with is, last-minute changes to reduce cost. The proven technical and managerial experi - executive architect is then put in a position ence. Some clients may be attracted by the of having to redesign details, which may idea of “creative tension” between the two jeopardize the consistency of the design. architectural firms, although it is doubtful Graham S. Wyatt, a partner in Robert A. that competition is better than collabora - M. Stern Architects, appreciates the value tion on a building project. It is similarly of associating with other firms but is not unlikely that an arranged or a shot-gun convinced that it is always the best solu - marriage between design and production tion. “When our firm was younger, small - firms will produce a satisfactory result. It is er and less experienced, we would associate

THE WHARTON REAL ESTATE REVIEW, VOL. XIV, NO. 1, SPRING 2010 either because we didn’t have the technical ing for a high-profile design architect may expertise to produce the construction doc - want to include a local architect for polit - uments and administer the construction ical reasons, whereas private clients may process, or because the perception of a have more freedom in this regard. The prospective client was that we did not pos - need of a design architect for an executive sess these skills,” he says. “We now find architect will depend on the design firm’s that we consistently achieve a much high - size and expertise. A small design firm er quality building, without increase in will almost always require an executive either fees or building cost, if we produce architect on large projects, whereas large the technical documents and administer firms such as Skidmore, Owings & construction ourselves.” Merrill rarely work with executive archi - Whether or not the design architect/ tects since they can provide all the design executive architect model is adopted and engineering services in-house. depends on the type of client, the size of There is no doubt that having two the architecture firm, and the size of the firms greatly increases the complexity of project. Public authorities who are look - the job, and it only makes sense if the

Figure 4: Four Seasons Performing Arts Centre, Toronto (Diamond + Schmitt, architects)

THE WHARTON REAL ESTATE REVIEW, VOL. XIV, NO. 1, SPRING 2010 project is large. In fact, William Rawn build, finance, manage, and maintain the reports that recently he has been concert hall for thirty years, on a lease- approached by out-of-town institutional back arrangement with the Montreal clients with smaller projects who have Symphony Orchestra. The winning team insisted that his firm do all the work. was headed by a giant Montreal-based Rawn’s office frequently collaborates international engineering firm, SNC- with executive architects, especially for Lavalin, and included Diamond + Schmitt projects outside New England. “We look as design architects, a local firm as execu - for executive architects which are also tive architects, and Aecon, Canada’s largest strong design firms, since our typical construction company. Diamond + practice is to involve the executive archi - Schmitt had recently designed the tect from the beginning of the project,” acclaimed Four Seasons Centre for the he says. He points out that this collabo - Performing Arts in Toronto (Figure 4), an ration is reflected in the fee structure: the opera house of which the conductor Valery executive architect might get 10 percent Gergiev, artistic director of the Mariinsky of the schematics fee, 20 percent of Theater in St. Petersburg, said, “I was design development fee, 80 percent of struck by its beauty, its practicality and its construction documents fee, and 90 per - friendliness with neighboring buildings, its cent of the construction administration superb acoustics and of course, its budget.” fee. Rawn believes that having a real col - Gergiev was particularly sensitive about laboration between the two firms in budgetary issues since the competition- important in achieving quality. This winning design for a new Mariinsky approach to teamwork is unusual; most Theater by French architectural star international stars are not interested in Dominique Perrault had just been can - having local architects involved in the celled due to cost over-runs. As a result of design phase. a new competition, Diamond + Schmitt The design architect/executive archi - were awarded the St. Petersburg commis - tect pairing is not the only model. In sion (in this case the associate architect is 2009, when the Quebec government KB ViPS of St. Petersburg). decided to build a new $260 million, Although the economic recession has 1,900-seat concert hall, it followed the already had a dampening effect on usual practice of holding a competition. extravagant building projects, it is But the purpose was not to pick an archi - unlikely that signature buildings will dis - tect or an architectural design, but to appear altogether. The elusive allure of choose a consortium that would design, the Bilbao Effect is too strong, and the

THE WHARTON REAL ESTATE REVIEW, VOL. XIV, NO. 1, SPRING 2010 attraction of using architecture to create monuments to outsize egos is hard to resist. There will always be a few archi - tectural stars, just as there will always be a few Hollywood stars. But there will be fewer than in the heyday of the signature building, for the proliferation of design firms that erupted in the last two decades is unlikely to continue. The future clear - ly belongs to teamwork. Large architec - tural firms with deep technical expertise will continue to dominate the field. One would also expect to see more consor - tiums on the Montreal model, building not only for cultural institutions, but also for universities, hospitals, and gov - ernments, as clients seek a combination of design excellence and long-term build - ing performance.

THE WHARTON REAL ESTATE REVIEW, VOL. XIV, NO. 1, SPRING 2010