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CHAPTER 1
Performance Spaces
Istanbul Cultural Center
Shattuck-St. Mary’s Performing Arts Hall
Astana Energy Hall
Congress Center
Willow Creek North Shore
The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare Theater
Steppenwolf Theatre Expansion
CHAPTER 2
Exhibit + Assembly
FKI Tower Conference Podium
Nur Alem Museum of Future Energy
Astana Arts Center
Chicago Architecture Center
Mobility Pavilion
CHAPTER 3
Experiential Spaces
1 Dubai Space Show
Kingston Leadership Plaza
The Portal at Runmao Tower
Shimao Tower Observatory
Al Wasl Plaza
Astana Discovery Center
ISTANBUL CULTURAL CENTER
Istanbul, Turkey
The 57,200-square-meter Istanbul Cultural Center consists of an integrated group of state-ofthe-art cultural buildings that share back-of-house and public spaces. The new center allows Istanbul residents and visitors to have maximum accessibility to world-class cultural venues with an array of open and enclosed public spaces.
The project was designed as a catalyst for the district’s economic development. The center reinvigorates the public square and adjacent green space, increasing land value and stimulating the property development market. Building the center would create new construction and supply chain jobs, as well as permanent employment opportunities.
The Istanbul Cultural Center seeks to restore the site of the former Atatürk Culture Center (AKM) in Taksim Square, near Gezi Park, at the center of the city. The vision replaces the former opera house, designed by architect Hayati Tabanlıoğlu in 1969. The building has been deemed a hazard for normal use after earthquake damage. The seminal building has remained vacant for years, rendering a prime area of real estate in the center of Istanbul unusable.
Function: Performing Arts Center | Status: Conceptual, 2015 | Client: Confidential | Awards: AIA Chicago, Unbuilt FORWARD Award, 2018; The Chicago Athenaeum, International Architecture Award, 2016; Architizer A+ Awards, Typology Categories, Cultural: Unbuilt, Special Mention, 2016; Architectural Review, MIPIM Future Project Award, Cultural Regeneration, Commendation, 2016; WAN Future Projects, Civic Award, Winner, 2015
ASTANA ENERGY HALL
Astana, Kazakhstan
Energy Hall is a building within a building: a 6,500 square-meter, 1,000 seat multi-functional Proscenium Theater set within an exterior glass envelope. The project was the main performance space for Expo 2017 in Kazakhstan.
The theater utilizes a fixed-seating system and is used for a range of performances including musical performances, physical performances, and film exhibitions. The building program includes an auditorium and working stage with wings, technical galleries, and a rear stage, as well as public areas performance support spaces.
The building’s unique feature is a pre-function public space between the glass envelope and the theatrical active volume skin of the building. This area is an active space that can be used outside of regular operating hours. The theatrical skin is an active, animated, and programmable membrane that produces digital theater at any time, regardless of the performance schedule.
Astana Energy Hall is located in the arts district of the Expo 2017’s post-expo, legacy community. The site has recently transformed into an office and research district known as the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC), which features a cultural core. The theater anchors this entertainment district with frequent programs and performances that contribute to the culture of the city and surrounding regions.
CONGRESS CENTER
Astana, Kazakhstan
Astana Congress Center was inspired by the fluid movements of the Golden Eagle or a “bürkit” that is canonized on the national flag of Kazakhstan. The structure’s tapered edges and sleek sweeping form minimize the scale and surface area of the building, thereby reducing construction costs.
Completed in 2017, the center hosted many significant events during Expo 2017 and is now a hub for events in Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC), the post-expo legacy development. The project features a state-of-the-art 3,000-person auditorium, exhibition spaces, sponsor presentation areas, secure VIP and VVIP areas, associated press rooms, supporting offices, and a dedicated parking garage.
Astana Congress Center borders several mid-rise residential buildings and the greater AIFC development, Expo 2017’s post-expo, legacy community. The program addresses the adjacent milieu through a contextual interface predicated on accessibility and transparency. As an integrated constituent within the neighborhood, the building provides a fundamental public amenity with performance spaces, exhibition halls, and other community amenities that foster coalescence.
Function: Auditorium + Conference Center | Status: Built, 2017 |
Client: Astana Expo 2017 | Awards: AIA National Tap/CCA Innovation Awards, Stellar Design, Astana Expo City, 2016
THE YARD AT CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE THEATER
Chicago, Illinois, USA
The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare Theater at Navy Pier in Chicago, Illinois, is integral to the pier’s Centennial Vision and reimagining of the Midwest’s most visited leisure destination. The new and renovated features are designed to expand Navy Pier’s impact and audience, showcasing a vibrant cultural, educational, environmental, and recreational landscape.
The Yard is a next-generation performance venue that reflects Chicago Shakespeare’s multi-faceted artistic vision as it redefines the traditional relationship between artist and audience, taking the theater production, performance, and audience to a new level. The project features flexible seating towers and a new entrance lobby that connects to the existing theater, introducing Chicago to a global trend in theater architecture, which focuses on flexible, adaptive, and sustainable design.
Navy Pier, located in Chicago, Illinois, opened to the public in 1916 as the “Municipal Pier,” designed by Charles Summer Frost and based on Daniel Burnham’s Master Plan Vision for Chicago. It originally served as a dock for freight, passenger traffic, art expositions, pageants, and indoor and outdoor recreation. Today, the pier still functions as an urban amenity with more than fifty acres of parks, gardens, shops, restaurants, family attractions, and exhibition facilities, drawing nearly two-million visitors annually. Function: Performance Hall | Status: Built, 2017 | Client: Chicago Shakespeare Theater | Awards: AIA Innovation Awards, Stellar Architecture, Honorable Mention, 2017; The Architecture MasterPrize, Honorable Mention in Architectural Design, Cultural Architecture, 2017
CHICAGO ARCHITECTURE CENTER
Chicago, Illinois, USA
The Chicago Architecture Center (CAC) was designed from an under-utilized retail space and recently enclosed exterior terrace at the Illinois Center in downtown Chicago, Illinois. The CAC was able to consolidate their influence into one general location by relocating the center to a site adjacent to the Chicago River and above the dock for the center’s architectural riverboat cruises.
The CAC has become one of the largest cultural organizations in Chicago serving 700,000 people annually. Their mission is to inspire people to discover why design matters. Participation has grown since the opening, fueling the rediscovery of Chicago architecture’s role in society.
Opened in August 2018, the Chicago Architecture Center, or CAC, is the new visitor experience and exhibition space for the nonprofit cultural arts organization formerly known as the Chicago Architecture Foundation, which was founded in 1966.
Function: Exhibit, Retail, Education | Status: Built, 2018 | Client: Chicago Architecture Center | Awards: AIA National, Interior Architecture Award, 2022; AIA Chicago, Interior Architecture Award, Citation of Merit, 2021; GCFD Special Achievement Real Estate Award, 2019; Chicago Building Congress, Merit Award, Finalist, 2019
SHIMAO TOWER OBSERVATORY
Shenzhen, People’s Republic of China
Shimao Tower, known as Shenzhen-Hong Kong International Center, references biomorphic characteristics in an abstract and subtle way, bringing a magnificent sculptural icon to northeast Shenzhen. The tower will be an icon of power and dignity with a dynamic sense of motion once constructed.
At night, the tower transforms into a light sculpture that is animated with the latest high-tech LED systems and programmed displays of kinetic art. At the top is one of the world’s highest observation decks, club facilities with restaurants, night clubs, spa facilities, and a spectacular swimming pool, all with breathtaking views of Shenzhen and beyond.
Located in the center of a proposed development, Shimao Tower was designed as a new public realm created to connect the existing Dayun Sport Campus. Set at the center of pristinely landscaped grounds, the master plan connects the existing venues so that the tower becomes the new focal point of activity throughout the entire district. This active connection is a continuation of the current public space system at the center of the existing sports venues to the south.
AL WASL PLAZA
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Framed by five highly sustainable buildings, at 130-meter diameters, Al Wasl Plaza defined the heart of the Expo 2020 Dubai, serving as the central public space during run from October 2021 through March 2022. The lushly landscaped plaza is shaded by a massive trellis that stands 67-meters tall and is veiled in perforated fabric.
The site has transitioned into Expo City Dubai, the post-expo legacy community. The surrounding 500,000 sm of mixed-use buildings now form an urban innovation district that is focused on the intersections between business, technology, and lifestyle. The buildings, streets, and utilities have been repurposed with 1.75 million square-meters available for infill development. Al Wasl Plaza remains the center of activity as a magnet for growth and activity, serving as a dynamic and memorable public space for the district.
Situated in the heart of Dubai, an Emirate within the United Arab Emirates, Expo City Dubai is embarking on a new center at the southern end of the city at the former site of Expo 2020. Positioned to become the next iconic locale, its proximity to the busy Jebel Ali Port, the expanding Al Maktoum Airport, and Dubai Investment Parks ensures its future residents shorter commutes and a model development for the growing Dubai South district.
Function: Performance Space + Public Garden | Status: Built, 2021 | Client: Expo 2020 Dubai LLC | Awards: MIPIM Awards, Best Cultural, Sports & Education Project, Recognition of Excellence, 2023, Architizer A+Awards, Architecture +Joy, Special Mention, 2022; Architecture MasterPrize, Recreational Architecture, Winner, 2022; Dezeen Awards, Cultural Buildings, Longlist, 2022; Re-Thinking the Future Awards, First Award, Cultural Built, 2022; The Chicago Athenaeum, Green Good Design Award, 2022; The Chicago Athenaeum, International Architecture Award, 2021
