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Redding School of the Arts – **Wins Second National Award for School Design**
Press release dated 4-19-12
The American Institute of Architects has announced that Trilogy Architecture Urban Design Research
has been selected to receive a Design Excellence Award for its project “Redding School of the Arts”. The AIA
award is the second national design award to be given to Trilogy Architecture this year for the school.
Trilogy Architecture, headed by architect [...]
January 28th, 2010 | Tags: Current, Energy, LEED, Schools, Theater
Turtle Bay Amphitheatre
Challenged to create adequate shade for an existing outdoor amphitheatre at the Turtle Bay Exploration Park without obscuring existing views within this natural setting, our solution was to design a series of canvas “louvers” suspended between thin structural piers. These louvered panels were angled to best protect the audience from the host summer sun, while allowing [...]
January 4th, 2010 | Tags: Current, Institutional, Park, Theater
McConnell Maintenance Facility
In order to minimize the impact of the 18,000 square foot building on the adjacent neighborhood, this concreate and steel structure was designed to be cut deeply into the existing slope. An adjustable canvas and steel shade canopy was inserted along the street frontage to counter the typical image of a maintenance building.
Photos ©2006 Steve [...]
November 10th, 2009 | Tags: Commercial, Current, McConnell
A Different Kind of Developer
The words “daring and creative” are rarely heard when decribing today’s housing developers. When confronted, it is not unusual to hear the almost automatic response, “I’m only building what the public wants”. But are they? This book tells the story of one post World WarII developer named Joseph Eichler who decided to build modern homes for the [...]
Mayor’s Memorial Plaza
In 1999 Trilogy volunteered its services to the Rotary Club of Redding for the design of a memorial in honor of Patricia Anderson, who died while serving as Mayor of Redding, and to acknowledge all of the community leaders who over the years have given their time to serve on the City Council. Our solution was based on a “water wall” rising out [...]
McConnell Arboretum
How does an architect end up designing a garden?
We like to think in this case it’s because we are “generalist” architects who are viewed more as problem-solvers than specialists in any one type of design. Our task with this project was to help with the realization of the long time dream of a dedicated group of local garden enthusiasts. The concept for [...]
October 12th, 2009 | Tags: Art, Community, Current, McConnell, Park
AgreePark 850 Home
In January 0f 2007, the local builder’s exchange, in partnership with the Redding Redevelopment Agency commissioned three local architects for a unique design project. Each was to design a single family housing prototype to promote affordable, energy efficient alternatives within our community. For our part, Trilogy accepted the challenge of designing a home that was not only the most affordable possible, [...]
The Carnegie Stage in Library Park
The Carnegie Library first opened in 1903, only to be torn down in 1962 to make room for a parking lot. Built mostly by volunteers, the steel, canvas and glass block structure known as the Carnegie Stage was designed as an abstract reminder to the memory of the historic library on whose site it now [...]
The Cascade Theatre
An important piece of Redding’s heritage, this 1935 Art Deco style movie theatre was purchasd in 1999 with the intention that it be completely restored for use as 1000 seat performing arts venue. That required a balance between historical restoration and the performance requirements necessary in the 21st century. The result combines elements such as [...]
October 5th, 2009 | Tags: Commercial, Current, Theater
Turtle Bay Administration Building
This 13,760 SF project houses a large non-profit foundation. It is located on an abandoned drive-in theatre property that was converted to an office campus site with multiple building pads surrounding a central plaza and public gardens. Our primary goal was to create a model for “affordable sustainability” in the hopes that the ideas showcased in its [...]
September 29th, 2009 | Tags: Commercial, Current, McConnell
Stone by Design
Lew French is our staff’s pick for Today’s Featured Artist. He moved to Martha’s Vineyard over twenty years ago and has worked on his own stone designs exclusively since. His work has been featured in the New York Times, House Beautiful, The Boston Globe Magazine, Architectural Digest, and Metropolitan Home.
”I had just turned nineteen when [...]
For the Glory
The 2009 Kinetic Grand Championship on California’s north coast was held on Memorial Day weekend, the 40th time this race has taken place since its modest beginnings in 1969. We were there with friends to watch the beginning of the race, and it’s difficlut to imagine a more fun way to spend a few hours. [...]
A Flash of Genius
Competing in a 1981 national competition against 1,420 other entries, an unknown undergraduate at Yale University named Maya Ying Lin was selected as the winner for her design for the Vietnam Memorial. Her concept was simple and inspirational:
She wanted to create a park within a park – a quiet protected place onto itself, yet harmonious with [...]
If Cars Could Fly…
If you’re looking for the perfect gift for someone who has everything, this may be it. The idea of flying cars goes back to the 1930′s, well before we were treated to the Jetson’s flying car on TV. The latest entry into car – plane hybrids is the Terrafugia Transition designed by MIT – trained [...]
Inspiration Revisited
If you are an architect and you are not inspired by this building by the twentieth century architectural icon Louis Kahn, then you need to change professions. The Exeter Library, with Kahn’s typically dramatic interior spaces framed in powerful but simple forms is a potent reminder that what is inside a building is as much (or more) about architecture as [...]
Art of The Brick
Nathan Sawaya is our staff’s pick for Today’s Featured Artist. In fact, we enjoy Nathan’s art so much TRILOGY is one of the sponsors of his exhibit, “The Art of the Brick” at the Turtle Bay Exploration Park , showing from May 16, 2009 through January 3, 2010. Anyone who ever played with LEGO blocks as [...]
Intensely Wood
Ben Butler is our staff’s pick for Today’s Featured Artist. We find his sculptures of patterned wood especially appealing.
“The spirit of science, of discovery and illumination, is central to my art. Ultimately, everything made is first found. Yet, for both art and science, successful work must allow others not to simply rediscover what you have [...]
The Architecture of Ruins
If you’ve ever driven along California Highway 299 in Shasta County past the small town of Ingot (population 30), you’ve probably wondered about the story behind these ruins. All that remains of what once was a functioning and robust enterprise, these sketetal ”bones” only hint at what once existed here.
“In 1873 Marcus Peck purchased the Copper Hill Mine group [...]
The Perfect $100,000 House
This book is a very personal look into how a very small segment of home building is slowly evolving toward prefabrication, while at the same time the construction industry as a whole remains as the status quo. The author, founding editor in chief of Dwell magazine Karrie Jacobs, embarks on a search across America for a [...]
Finding Treasure
Celeste White is our staff’s pick for Today’s Featured Artist. As we’ve said before, Northern California has some wonderful artists, and Celeste is another great example.
“In my work, I have two main purposes: In my individual pieces, I strive to create beauty where there might be perceived ugliness, to redeem materials that otherwise might be [...]
An Extreme Staircase
This year is 2007. I am a fifth year architecture student at Montana State University, and my assignment is to design a staircase. I decide to use this as an opportunity to explore the artistic notion of a stair connecting land and water within Guerney State Park in Wyoming. Not wanting to obstruct the park’s [...]
I wish I was a Hollywood Architect, Part 2
This scene from the 2001 movie Life as a House features an encounter with a building inspector that is completely unbelievable. However, we include it under the category of “wishful thinking”, because most architects only wish they could take care of building code issues this easily.
Wouldn’t it be Nice…
if as architects we lived long enough to be able to see our work age
within the confines of its
natural environment, suffering neither deterioration nor neglect…
and in the process
actually become the better for it?
12/25/2003
All That Glitters is Not Green
Here is a brief excerpt from my conference talk:
These days it seems as though “Green” is everywhere we turn. Environmentally friendly living ideas have finally made it to mainstream America, or at the very least, Good Morning America. The message being broadcast is clear from coast to coast: “Green is good, and it’s here to stay”. [...]
It should come as no surprise…
that
rebuilding our cities
often begins with what seems
like a backward step:
It’s called addition by destruction.
12/25/2005
The removal of the first section of roof over the Redding Downtown Mall, Redding, California.
What Timeless Really Means
From its opening on April 22, 1939 in Racine, Wisconsin, the SC Johnson Wax Administration Building by Frank Lloyd Wright was destined to become one of the finest examples of 20th century American architecture. The Great Workroom, covering nearly on-half acre, must be seen in person (as I have) to be truly appreciated and the entry foyer [...]
Is Nuclear Fusion Finally (almost) Here?
When it comes to research into new energy sources, this may just be “The Next Really Cool Thing”:
If you hang around the renewable-energy business for long, you’ll hear a lot of tall tales. You’ll hear about someone who’s invented a process to convert coal into vegetable oil in his garage and someone else who has [...]
A Satisfying Map of the Journey
Bryan Tedrick is our staff’s pick for Today’s Featured Artist. Northern California has some wonderful artists, and Bryan Tedrick certainly fits into this category.
“While I may have a general idea in mind when creating a sculpture, the passages that constitute the whole are a surprise to me. Any durable material is fair game in this [...]
The Prefabricated Home
Architects have long been fascinated with the idea of designing prefabricated housing. The question remains, however, as to why they haven’t experienced as much success as might be expected. This book offers a clear explanation of the often dysfunctional relationship between architect and prefabrication while offering examples of both their successes and their failures. While the author offers [...]
The Art of Creating Creatures
This fascinating video was discovered by one of our own designers, Josh. Is it art or is it science? You will have to decide for youself, but as you watch try to imagine the possible applications for this “evolving lifeform”. We can think of several.
The World is Flat
This is not a new book – in fact, it was published to great acclaim back in 2005 – but it’s worth featuring again as the best-selling author has just released his newest book Hot, Flat and Crowded. This is a book of ideas, a thought-provoking dissertation on how the world has become more interconnected, [...]
April 5th, 2009 | Tags: Current
Land Art
Andy Goldsworthy is our staff’s pick for Today’s Featured Artist.
“I enjoy the freedom of just using my hands and “found” tools–a sharp stone, the quill of a feather, thorns. I take the opportunities each day offers: if it is snowing, I work with snow, at leaf-fall it will be with leaves; a blown-over tree becomes [...]
It’s ironic…
that while architecture is generally thought of
as a creative process, what we really do as
architects is to “recreate”, whether it be
a feeling or fantasy, mood or memory;
architecture is often more about imagery
than
about images.
12/25/2002
Fantasy Fountain, Redding, CA
Beach House
Shelter comes in many forms, and its builders are often anonymous. We think that the ad hoc nature of this creation makes it all the more impressive.
The Language of School Design
In our opinion, this book should be required reading for each and every architect who designs schools. It attempts to answer the questions, “why do schools look the way they do? Why is there a chasm between widely acknowledged best practice principles and the actual design at a majority of school facilities? Why has the disconnect [...]
I wish I was a Hollywood Architect, Part 1
There are architects, and then there are architects as portrayed in the movies. Although the celluloid architect is often an outrageously inaccurate caricature, sometimes Hollywood actually gets it right. In this clip from the movie Sleepless in Seattle, any architect who has ever designed a custom home will recognize the truth of this scene.
Paper Works
Peter Callesen is our staff’s pick for Today’s Featured Artist.
The paper cut sculptures explore the probable and magical transformation of the flat sheet of paper into figures that expand into the space surrounding them. The negative and absent 2 dimensional space left by the cut, points out the contrast to the 3 dimensional reality it [...]
Nature…
possesses all the elements of great art;
it remains
for man to believe that it can be
manipulated to create a more beautiful art form.
The question we must ask
is whether this is the
result of man’s arrogance toward his environment
or the mere
playfulness of a creative spirit?
12/25/2001
Turtle Bay Museum and Visitors’ Center
Trilogy acted as the local associate firm under Bohlin Cywinski Jackson on the Turtle Bay Museum and Visitors’ Center in Redding, California. This new $25 million centerpiece to the Turtle Bay Exploration Park opened its doors to the community in 2000. Here’s what BCJ says about this project:
Turtle Bay Exploration Park is a private, non-profit organization dedicated
to education and interpretation [...]
March 23rd, 2009 | Tags: Current, Institutional
America’s Top Architecture Schools
…at least according to Design Intelligence. We don’t have the results yet for 2009, but we have to admit to a bit of inter-office grumbling over last year’s results. Why did Cornell fall to #2 and why isn’t Montana State in this survey? Anyway, here’s an excerpt from the 2008 publication:
Every year for the last nine years, the Design [...]
Weird & Cool Houses
If you think you understand people, then you need to think again.
If you think these houses are unusual, check out this site – hemmy,net
Time and Architecture
The inspiration for this mixed media creation of our own Josh and Emily comes from our mission statement:
“No more can we applaud designs that fail
to take our planet into consideration.
The time has come to let go the architecture of convenience
and to embrace an architecture of connection.”
Soft Toilet Paper is Rough on Forests
It seems as though toilet paper is no longer flying beneath the environmental radar. It cannot be denied that America has a love for soft tissue…
But fluffiness comes at a price: millions of trees harvested in North America and in Latin American countries, including some percentage of trees from rare old-growth forests of Canada. Although toilet tissue [...]
Last Child in The Woods
Everyone who has children needs to read this book. As parents we have become afraid to allow nature to remain a refuge for our children to play without constant supervison. Developers, architects and city planners as well need to read this book. The way we plan, design and legislate our outdoor space too often leaves no room for imagination, and no place [...]
March 19th, 2009 | Tags: Current
Thomas Friedman on the John Stewart Show
Thomas L. Friedman won the 2002 Pulitzer Prize for commentary, his third Pulitzer for The New York Times. Mr. Friedman’s book, “The World is Flat: A Brief History of the 21st Century,” was released in April 2005 and won the inaugural Goldman Sachs/Financial Times Business Book of the Year award. His latest book, “Hot,Flat and [...]
A New Stage for Downtown
In our office, every project starts with a sketch, and the Carnegie Stage in downtown Redding’s Library Park is no exception. But before the sketch came the idea, based on a project done by the architect Robert Venturi in the 1970′s. With his Franklin Court “ghost structures” project Venturi created a sketetal structure to evoke Benjamin Franklin’s [...]
A Polar Bear in London
No, it’s not what you think.
If you went down to the Thames today you were sure of a big surprise. This giant sculpture of a polar bear stranded on a block of ice floated 7.5 miles from Greenwich towards the centre of London to highlight the problem of melting ice caps. - Daily Telegraph
Plan B 3.0 Mobilizing to Save Civilization
If you could read only one book on climate change and how to survive the next 100 years, this should be it. Lester Brown has clearly laid out each of the many challenges our planet faces now and in the near future. He backs up his cautionary statement with enough documentation to satisfy any reader who has the desire to probe more deeply into this subject. But [...]
Are You a Hypermiler?
If you own a Hybrid car, chances are you have changed your driving habits at least a little bit to see how high you can get that miles-per-gallon average. Well now several car companies are taking this idea to an entirely new level:
When new hybrids from Ford and Honda roll into showrooms this spring, drivers will find flashy [...]
To Create an Architecture…
that does not diminish its
natural surroundings, but rather says to those
who observe it, man does have the ability to
enhance his environment instead of
simply destroying it…
That is a goal worth striving for.
12/25/2000
Buttermilk Falls State Park, Ithaca, N.Y.
No more can we applaud designs that fail to take our planet into consideration, the time has come to let go the architecture of convenience and to embrace an architecture of connection.
Sketchbook
Between Pages
The words “daring and creative” are rarely heard when decribing today’s housing developers. When confronted, it is not unusual to hear the almost automatic response, “I’m only building what the public wants”. But are they? This book tells the story of one post World WarII developer named Joseph Eichler who decided to build modern homes for the [...]
October 16th, 2009 | A Different Kind of Developer
Through Art
Lew French is our staff’s pick for Today’s Featured Artist. He moved to Martha’s Vineyard over twenty years ago and has worked on his own stone designs exclusively since. His work has been featured in the New York Times, House Beautiful, The Boston Globe Magazine, Architectural Digest, and Metropolitan Home.
”I had just turned nineteen when [...]
June 3rd, 2009 | Stone by Design
As Random As
The 2009 Kinetic Grand Championship on California’s north coast was held on Memorial Day weekend, the 40th time this race has taken place since its modest beginnings in 1969. We were there with friends to watch the beginning of the race, and it’s difficlut to imagine a more fun way to spend a few hours. [...]
June 1st, 2009 | For the Glory
In Reality
Competing in a 1981 national competition against 1,420 other entries, an unknown undergraduate at Yale University named Maya Ying Lin was selected as the winner for her design for the Vietnam Memorial. Her concept was simple and inspirational:
She wanted to create a park within a park – a quiet protected place onto itself, yet harmonious with [...]
June 1st, 2009 | A Flash of Genius
Beyond Ideas
If you’re looking for the perfect gift for someone who has everything, this may be it. The idea of flying cars goes back to the 1930′s, well before we were treated to the Jetson’s flying car on TV. The latest entry into car – plane hybrids is the Terrafugia Transition designed by MIT – trained [...]
May 29th, 2009 | If Cars Could Fly…
In Reality
If you are an architect and you are not inspired by this building by the twentieth century architectural icon Louis Kahn, then you need to change professions. The Exeter Library, with Kahn’s typically dramatic interior spaces framed in powerful but simple forms is a potent reminder that what is inside a building is as much (or more) about architecture as [...]
May 15th, 2009 | Inspiration Revisited
Through Art
Nathan Sawaya is our staff’s pick for Today’s Featured Artist. In fact, we enjoy Nathan’s art so much TRILOGY is one of the sponsors of his exhibit, “The Art of the Brick” at the Turtle Bay Exploration Park , showing from May 16, 2009 through January 3, 2010. Anyone who ever played with LEGO blocks as [...]
May 12th, 2009 | Art of The Brick
Through Art
Ben Butler is our staff’s pick for Today’s Featured Artist. We find his sculptures of patterned wood especially appealing.
“The spirit of science, of discovery and illumination, is central to my art. Ultimately, everything made is first found. Yet, for both art and science, successful work must allow others not to simply rediscover what you have [...]
May 5th, 2009 | Intensely Wood
Across Town
If you’ve ever driven along California Highway 299 in Shasta County past the small town of Ingot (population 30), you’ve probably wondered about the story behind these ruins. All that remains of what once was a functioning and robust enterprise, these sketetal ”bones” only hint at what once existed here.
“In 1873 Marcus Peck purchased the Copper Hill Mine group [...]
May 3rd, 2009 | The Architecture of Ruins
Between Pages
This book is a very personal look into how a very small segment of home building is slowly evolving toward prefabrication, while at the same time the construction industry as a whole remains as the status quo. The author, founding editor in chief of Dwell magazine Karrie Jacobs, embarks on a search across America for a [...]
April 30th, 2009 | The Perfect $100,000 House
Through Art
Celeste White is our staff’s pick for Today’s Featured Artist. As we’ve said before, Northern California has some wonderful artists, and Celeste is another great example.
“In my work, I have two main purposes: In my individual pieces, I strive to create beauty where there might be perceived ugliness, to redeem materials that otherwise might be [...]
April 27th, 2009 | Finding Treasure
During Class
This year is 2007. I am a fifth year architecture student at Montana State University, and my assignment is to design a staircase. I decide to use this as an opportunity to explore the artistic notion of a stair connecting land and water within Guerney State Park in Wyoming. Not wanting to obstruct the park’s [...]
April 24th, 2009 | An Extreme Staircase
In Reality
This scene from the 2001 movie Life as a House features an encounter with a building inspector that is completely unbelievable. However, we include it under the category of “wishful thinking”, because most architects only wish they could take care of building code issues this easily.
April 23rd, 2009 | I wish I was a Hollywood Architect, Part 2
After Thoughts
if as architects we lived long enough to be able to see our work age
within the confines of its
natural environment, suffering neither deterioration nor neglect…
and in the process
actually become the better for it?
12/25/2003
April 20th, 2009 | Wouldn’t it be Nice…
Out of School
Here is a brief excerpt from my conference talk:
These days it seems as though “Green” is everywhere we turn. Environmentally friendly living ideas have finally made it to mainstream America, or at the very least, Good Morning America. The message being broadcast is clear from coast to coast: “Green is good, and it’s here to stay”. [...]
April 16th, 2009 | All That Glitters is Not Green
After Thoughts
that
rebuilding our cities
often begins with what seems
like a backward step:
It’s called addition by destruction.
12/25/2005
The removal of the first section of roof over the Redding Downtown Mall, Redding, California.
April 14th, 2009 | It should come as no surprise…
In Reality
From its opening on April 22, 1939 in Racine, Wisconsin, the SC Johnson Wax Administration Building by Frank Lloyd Wright was destined to become one of the finest examples of 20th century American architecture. The Great Workroom, covering nearly on-half acre, must be seen in person (as I have) to be truly appreciated and the entry foyer [...]
April 13th, 2009 | What Timeless Really Means
On The Frontier
When it comes to research into new energy sources, this may just be “The Next Really Cool Thing”:
If you hang around the renewable-energy business for long, you’ll hear a lot of tall tales. You’ll hear about someone who’s invented a process to convert coal into vegetable oil in his garage and someone else who has [...]
April 11th, 2009 | Is Nuclear Fusion Finally (almost) Here?
Through Art
Bryan Tedrick is our staff’s pick for Today’s Featured Artist. Northern California has some wonderful artists, and Bryan Tedrick certainly fits into this category.
“While I may have a general idea in mind when creating a sculpture, the passages that constitute the whole are a surprise to me. Any durable material is fair game in this [...]
April 7th, 2009 | A Satisfying Map of the Journey
Between Pages
Architects have long been fascinated with the idea of designing prefabricated housing. The question remains, however, as to why they haven’t experienced as much success as might be expected. This book offers a clear explanation of the often dysfunctional relationship between architect and prefabrication while offering examples of both their successes and their failures. While the author offers [...]
April 7th, 2009 | The Prefabricated Home
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