Located in the River North neighborhood of Chicago, the new home for the Poetry Foundation is a building in dialogue with a garden. The courtyard garden acts as another room inside the space and serves as an urban sanctuary. Visitors access the building through the garden and instantly see the double height library, which welcomes them into this literary space. Inside, the foundation features performance space, a gallery and library on the ground floor, while office spaces are located on the second level. Views of the garden can be seen throughout the building.
The building is surrounded by a perforated screen, which works to protect the building from the elements, while filtering natural daylight into the space to create a soft and pleasant light. The project is aiming for LEED Silver certification and has integrated a number of sustainable design strategies and energy-efficient systems. Besides the garden space, the building enjoys a partial green roof. Many materials were locally sourced and/or produced from renewable or recycled sources. The project was completed in June of 2011 and is now open to the public.
The Poetry Foundation, designed by John Ronan Architects, is a daring ode to the structure of a poem. Located in Chicago, the building provides space for a library, exhibitions and the offices of Poetry Magazine. The building’s volume is composed of a series of layers, not unlike a poem, and visitors to the foundation move through and between them to understand the space in its entirety. With a perforated screen on the exterior, the building accepts filtered sunlight for a tranquil experience inside,…
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Located in the River North neighborhood of Chicago, the new home for the Poetry Foundation is a building in dialogue with a garden.
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The courtyard garden acts as another room inside the space and serves as an urban sanctuary.
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Visitors access the building through the garden and instantly see the double height library, which welcomes them into this literary space.
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Inside, the foundation features performance space, gallery and library on the ground floor, while office spaces are located on the second level.
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Views of the garden can be seen throughout the building, especially from the performance space where visitors can listen to poets read their work with the garden as the backdrop.
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The building is surrounded by a perforated screen, which works to protect the building from the elements, while filtering natural daylight into the space to create a soft and pleasant light.
[8]
The project is aiming for LEED Silver certification and has integrated a number of sustainable design strategies and energy-efficient systems.
[9]
Besides the garden space, the building enjoys a partial green roof.
[10]
Many materials were locally sourced and/or produced from renewable or recycled sources.
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The project was completed in June of 2011 and is now open to the public.
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Views from inside the library over the garden.
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The perforated rain/shade screen surrounds the building.
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