Cocktails in an Art Gallery.... Yes Pease!!

From Thrillist: 

Lamont Bishop Gallery

Tapping into the art scene

The art world's never been a dry one, from Van Gogh's epic absinthe benders, to that time when Jackson Pollock accidentally spilled his cranberry juice over all those canvasses. For a new spot letting you enjoy art whilst getting similarly loose, check out the Lamont Bishop Gallery.

Just opened and named for the owner's art school mentor, Lamont Bishop aims to p-arty, showcasing "the nation’s emerging contemporary artists with budding collectors" in a converted old butcher's shop with an exposed brick front room gallery under the original '20s tin ceiling, and a back room with a lacquered birch bar and custom-crafted rolling DJ booth, because who wants to listen to a DJ who isn't? To get the creative juices flowing, the bar's armed with three taps (one's pouring Batch 19), French Pierre Ferrand Cognac, and cab, merlot, and chardonnay from Cali's Wooden Bottle Wine (actually comes in a wooden bottle). Oh also, there's art there too, with the first, currently running exhibition being UMD-grad Annie Kielman's multimedia multi-dimensional work, which ranges from a black skate deck anchoring elaborately flowing sheets of black foam, to the "Control Top" installation, consisting of coral-like structures sprouting from the walls and made from nylon stockings stuffed with Styrofoam bean bag balls.

Up next, they'll be hosting an exhibit called "Exposed: The Polaroid Retrospective II", which'll feature photos from 26 different artists taken on Polaroid cameras.

Read more: http://www.thrillist.com/bars/washington/dc/20001/mount-vernon-sq/lamont-bishop-gallery_lounges#ixzz1GbRLBp3F

FEATURED PROJECTS   ON THE BOARDS    HOTELS    SPAS    MULTI-RESIDENTIAL    ForrestPerkins To Design Interiors for Five-Star St. Regis in Amman, Jordan     Working With Al Maabar and Starwood Hotels on Mixed-Use Development   Washington, DC (March 2011) - ForrestPerkins, the international architecture and design firm, has been awarded the interior design for the St. Regis Amman and The Residences at St. Regis Amman in Jordan by Al Maabar Abdoun Real Estate Development Company. This five-star luxury hotel and multi-residential project will mark St. Regis' first entrée into Jordan.ForrestPerkins is honored to have been selected for this project and to be working with Al Maabar Abdoun Real Estate Development Company and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. Stephen Perkins, AIA, ISHC, co-founder and principal of ForrestPerkins, is inspired by the project. "The ancient and modern history, natural and urban fabric, culture and rich traditions of this important international city offer a rich lode of influences for the design of such an important new development," he says. The new St. Regis Amman will be located in Abdoun, an exclusive neighborhood of Amman that is home to many embassies and ambassadors' residences. The hotel will feature 270  guest rooms, including 91 suites, four restaurants and a supper club, a café, ballroom, bar, pool and pool bar, spa and fitness center. The Residences at St. Regis Amman will include approximately 80 branded units. ForrestPerkins will design the one- to five-bedroom apartments, lobby, fitness center and gourmet shops within the residential segment of the development. ForrestPerkins' successful work in luxury hotels and multi-family residences is known for its stunning sophistication and beauty balanced with practicality. The firm has designed and/or renovated more than 100 luxury hotels and multi-family residences worldwide, including two of the premier hotels in the Jabal Omar Development Project in Makkah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.ForrestPerkins also designed the first showroom to open in the Middle East for Kohler Interiors Hospitality (KIH). This elegant showroom was developed with Quartet Specialized Furniture, KIH's regional franchisee, in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. ForrestPerkins, which has offices in Washington, DC, Dallas, Texas and San Francisco, California will provide the interior design services for the St. Regis Amman and The Residences at St. Regis Amman, and New York-based Perkins Eastman Architects (no relation) will be the Architect of Record. The Al Maabar Abdoun Five-Star Luxury Mixed-Use Development is scheduled to open in 2014.  CONTACT:   Trish Donnally 202.478.8810, ext. 150 tdonnally@forrestperkins.com

ORRESTPERKINS-designed JW Marriott Hotel Featured on The Today Show

FEATURED PROJECTS   ON THE BOARDS    HOTELS    SPAS    MULTI-RESIDENTIAL FORRESTPERKINS-designed JW Marriott Hotel Featured on The Today Show    JW Marriott San Antonio Is One of Travel + Leisure's Favorites for Spring Break Family Getaways Washington, DC (March 2011) - ForrestPerkins designed the spectacular JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa in Texas that was the first hotel featured on The Today Show, when it recently highlighted Travel & Leisure's suggestions for "5 Spring Break Getaways for the Family." Nilou Motamed, features director for Travel + Leisure, said the hotel "has everything you would want on the property." The new LEED-certified resort, which is the largest JW Marriott resort in the world, includes 1,002 rooms, seven unique dining options, a breathtaking spa, two championship golf courses and even a water park on the property. Click on either image below to watch: Another ForrestPerkins-designed hotel, The Nines in Portland, Oregon was also featured on The Today Show recently, when it highlighted Travel & Leisure's World's Best Hotels for 2011 in January. Follow the link here to see the fashionable Nines, a Luxury Collection Hotel that is LEED-certified and includes 331 rooms located within the top floors of the iconic Meier & Frank building, a former department store: Take a look: The Today Show Featuring the Nines  CONTACT:   Trish Donnally 202.478.8810, ext. 150 tdonnally@forrestperkins.com www.forrestperkins.com Director of Communications ForrestPerkins

Interior Design Magazine Daily Fix on Cool new NY Building

New York by Gehry Opens to Tenants in Lower Manhattan

A standard inclusion on every architect’s checklist is the ground-up design of a bonafide skyscraper. Surprisingly, Frank Gehry checks his off only this year with the completion of the 870-foot New York by Gehry. The delay of this particular accomplishment, however, becomes somewhat more coherent when one begins to count the superlatives attached to the 76-story residential tower—the Western Hemisphere’s tallest—and mixed-use development on Spruce Street in lower Manhattan.

The architect’s signature ripples come courtesy of stainless-steel curtain wall cladding the exterior. Those undulations, the influence of which the architect attributes to Gianlorenzo Bernini and the engineering of which were determined by a software platform developed by Gehry Technologies called Digital Project, affect the interior scheme as bulges on the façade allow for a multitude of Gaudi-like interior window bays. The lack of uniformity has allowed for some 200 unique floor plans from which tenants may choose. Currently, 18 studio, one- and two-bedroom rental models are on view to the public. White oak flooring and custom Douglas Fir woodwork grace the lobby.

The building is surrounded by 15,000 square feet of public plaza landscaped by Field Operations and Dutch horticulturistPiet Oudolf, the team responsible for the creative reuse and design of New York’s defunct High Line train rail. A 100,000-square-foot public primary school with a rooftop play area will occupy the building’s first five floors. Formerly used as a parking lot by New York Downtown Hospital, which sold the site for development, the building also features offices and ambulatory-care facilities for professionals affiliated with the hospital. Car commuters needn’t worry, however: 26,000 square feet of below-grade garage is available for 175 hospital vehicles.

The 22,000 square feet of residential amenities include fitness and spa facilities and entertainment spaces, including a terrace for outdoor grilling, a library, children’s playrooms, and screening and game rooms with custom seating. A skylighted swimming pool is enclosed by retracting glass doors that open onto a wraparound sundeck. Penthouse tenants, depending on direction, will be able to enjoy views of the Hudson River’s piers and parks, all five East River bridges, the Empire State and Chrysler buildings, all the way to a northern horizon including Central Park and the George Washington Bridge.

Images courtesy of New York by Gehry.

Article Source: http://dailyfix.interiordesign.net/projects/residential/3536/new-york-by-gehry-opens-to-tenants-in-lower-manhattan

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From OTJ ArchiTect's Blog

The Lorton Workhouse Arts Center: How OTJ Architects Designs for Adaptive Reuse Projects

JAN26

  Last month, Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell appeared alongside Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Sharon Bulova at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Phase II of the Lorton Workhouse Arts Center. OTJ Architects’ Partner and Studio Director Tony Martin has been managing this 85,000 SF project since 2009, where the Lorton Arts Foundation is creatively readapting a historic prison complex that was first commissioned at the beginning of the 20th Century under President Theodore Roosevelt. This facility was originally intended to provide prisoners with fresh air, natural light and structured, purposeful work as the basis for their rehabilitation. Agricultural operations began at the Workhouse in 1912 and the prisoners created a brick plant where they produced bricks to construct the permanent buildings that now make up the Workhouse Arts Center. Instead of taking shovels to dirt at the December event, Governor McDonnell and Chairman Bulova took sledgehammers to bricks as a ceremonial homage to this unique aspect of the Workhouse’s history.

  The story of this adaptive reuse began in the 1980’s, when overcrowding had become an issue and the buildings were in a state of severe disrepair. The conditions continued to worsen until DC prison officials were finally ordered to begin transferring prisoners out of the Lorton facility in preparation for its closing in 1997. Fairfax County received the property title five years later, a transfer made possible through the Lorton Technical Corrections Act that required the county to develop an adaptive re-use plan for the land and former prison facilities. The Lorton Arts Foundation came up with an idea to transform this series of indoor/outdoor spaces into a cultural arts center. In July 2004, a century after Roosevelt put forth his original vision for this plot of land, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved the rezoning of a 55-acre portion of the former correctional facility to become the Workhouse Arts Center. September 2008 marked the official grand opening of Phase I (designed by BBGM), when visitors could tour the grounds, learn about the history of the complex, visit the artists’ studios, participate in art classes and workshops, attend musical and theatre performances and visit the two-story gallery building.

  OTJ Architects was then hired to complete Phase II, which included the renovation and design of three more spaces – The Kid’s Zone, The Events Center, and the Performance Theater. The Kid’s Zone, a 7,500 SF former dormitory building, is set to open in the summer of 2011 with several classrooms and a 100-person state of the art studio theater. By Fall 2011, the space that once served as the prisoner’s dining hall will become a 600-seat event/conference center – equipped with a full-service kitchen, bridal suite, a multi-use conference center and a movable dividing wall.

  Last but not least, next winter will see the conversion of a 12,000 SF former multi-use gym and meeting building into a 300-seat performance theater with a new mezzanine level, and newly excavated lower level for dressing areas. This will effectively complete Phase I and Phase II – the adaptive reuse segments of the project. The new construction portions, Phase III, are likely to break ground in 2012 and will include an amphitheater, artist residences, and restaurants. There have also been discussions of converting the existing campus power plant into a microbrewery, as well as potentially adding a culinary arts center and/or a performing arts branch of a regional university into the mix.

  Since the entire site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the concept of “Adaptive Reuse” has truly been a driving force in the redevelopment process. Wherever possible, historic and recovered on-site materials are incorporated, and all these projects use the latest energy efficiency, waste reduction and conservation techniques. In fact, based on an ongoing feasibility study the entire complex will be designed to reuse methane gas from the adjacent landfill for as many of the new and renovated facilities as possible.

  Lorton is now the fastest growing part of the county, and the Workhouse Arts Center is quickly establishing itself as the region’s most distinctive cultural arts complex. When all phases of the renovation are complete it will consist of 150,000 square feet of adaptively reused buildings, as well as 60,000 square feet of new construction and 40 acres of open green space. OTJ Architects is proud of the partnership it has nurtured with the Lorton Arts Foundation, and is looking forward to turning their innovative vision into a reality in the years to come.

For more information on the Lorton Arts Foundation, visit:  http://www.lortonarts.org/

For more information on the Worhouse Arts Center, visit:  http://www.workhousearts.org/

Check out their Blog Here: http://www.otj.com/Blog/EntryId/21/The-Lorton-Workhouse-Arts-Center-How-OTJ-Architects-Designs-for-Adaptive-Reuse-Projects.aspx