What do you think of Coop Himmelblau’s HS No. 9 school in L.A? (Metropolis Magazine, July/August 2011 issue)

[Rick Kingsbury]

One of the students interviewed for the article said “…the aesthetics of it are that of a correctional facility”  What do you think?  In my mind, this school demonstrates well why the world needs landscape architects!

[Jason T. Radice]

They had an article in Metropolis that wasn’t about chairs? Sure, now that I’ve cancelled it.

[Rick Kingsbury]

Ha!  Still a lot of chairs, but they do have Ben Katchor.

[Douglas M. Rooney]

Obviously that student has never been in a correctional facility. There are too many windows and no barbed wire. I think alien spacecraft meets nuclear power plant is a more fitting description.

[Mara Ramos]

wow! i do know what you mean rick. the worst part is that it went from design development to construction and not one decision-maker found it to be an odd environment for a school.

i’m not talking about the architecture here, but the lack of landscape design/consideration… poor kids. i’m an architect whose now doing a masters in L.A., and even before i got acquainted with this profession, i would’ve found this to be a huge turn off. during the warm weather it will be warmer, during cold weather it will be sadder.

[ida]

The building is so dumb it’s cool. I’ve passed by there there many times and it’s inspiring. My high school was pretty, but it’s definitely on the lame side. Comfortable or not, the building gets the creative mind going- fit for a performing arts school.

[Rick Kingsbury]

It’s creative all right, for the architect.  As one student put it “The lack of color puts a damper on my creative spirit. I appreciate the fact that I go to a different school, but sometimes these large blocks of gray concrete suffocate my artistic ability”

[Jon Quackenbush]

I dig the architecture.  I am tired of everything being safe, so kudos for that.  Kids need to be aware of the possibilities of life, this could stimulate them in an interesting way.  On the other hand, the landscape seems to have been treated with indifference, which sends a really poor message.  The landscape from what I have seen looks like a sea of concrete… which is like applying a 1950’s site design approach with a 21st century building popped on it.

Go forth and subdue nature, bend her to your will, for you are man, superior.

[Jon Quackenbush]

If it were surrounded by green, lush and full, it could be a pleasant contrast. Opportunity temporarily lost.

Architect:  “You can’t hide any direct view of MY building with a tree…”

 

[Jason T. Radice]

Just saw the thing online..UGGGG. It doesn’t look like a prison, prisons are nicer than this. It looks unfinished, or in a state of abandonment. The design is downright Soviet..or gulagism. What was the school thinking of? In places such as schools, form needs to follow function, and there is a long wstablished method for design. These ‘architects’ don’t seem to subscribe to practicality, or even what is proper. Kind of like several famous libraries designed by famous architects. You know the ones..the roof leaks on to the stacks, and there are nore windows than a solarium…neither of which are great for the preservation of books.

 

Morons

[Pat S. Rosend]

Interesting use of limited resources.

http://www.designboom.com/weblog/cat/9/view/4961/high-school-9-by-coop-himmelblau.html

 

I don’t like it myself. Very pretentious and depressing.

[Author]

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