MOBILE MAP STOPS 91 – 94

First Financial Bank, by Carlos Jimenez

91 – Southside Elementary

This building is an example of Brutalist architecture, a word from a French phrase meaning raw concrete. Eliot Noyes designed it to be “larger than life.”

Noyes also designed the school with energy conservation in mind. The exterior and interior walls are of pre-cast concrete and remain in their natural state, minimizing maintenance of these surfaces. 

The stark concrete interior spaces are warmed and enlivened by walnut-stained oak woodwork and furniture, carpeted hallways and classrooms, and a slate floor in the commons area. Lighting (both natural and man made) were used in imaginative ways to make up for the lack of finish and ornamentation on the walls.

The centerpiece of the building is the sunny, enclosed courtyard – the commons. Noyes saw the building as a city, with the commons area as its town square.

The austere exterior conceals a surprisingly light-filled interior. Four concrete stairwells are naturally lit with clerestory and vertical slot windows and have been enlivened with brightly colored abstract murals by Ivan Chermayeff, a prolific designer, illustrator, and artist who has created memorable, iconic trademarks for hundreds of clients. He is a founding partner of Chermayeff & Geismar, a leading graphic design firm in the fields of corporate identity, brand development, and logo design.

Fire Station Six - William Rawn

92 – Fire Station Six

Description of Fire Station 6 from William Rawn’s website :

For fast-moving traffic, the east and west facades boast distinct glass grids that face up and down the highway. The south facade, parallel to Indiana Highway 450 South, is a solid skin of concrete masonry resembling stone with a continuous 4- foot-high horizontal strip window. In the daytime, the glass block takes in the same coloration as the stone elevation. At night, the building is a beacon, as its glass facades and horizontal strip window glow from within.

The project received the 2000 Honor Award in Architecture from The New England Chapter of AIA and the 2001 Honor Award for Design from The Boston Society of Architects.

Fire Station Six - William Rawn

93 – Clifty Creek School

Architect Richard Meier is known for his solid white porcelain panel buildings, yet for this project, he selected white glazed and gray concrete block for a durable and low maintenance exterior, as well as white framed windows and glass block.

Located on a sloping 22-acre site, the double-height, north-lit library features Meier’s signature glass curtain wall and open ramps, as well as a piano-curved story-telling balcony.

The interiors were originally all white, since Meier believed “color comes from the way light comes into the building…and serves as a canvas for the children’s paintings…kids add color and make each classroom different.”

Meier attended the dedication and modestly remarked that he hoped his young children would be able to attend a school as fine as this one.

Fire Station Six - William Rawn

94 – Otter Creek Clubhouse

Clubhouse Architect, Harry Weese
Landscape Architect, Dan Kiley
Golf Course Architect, Robert Trent Jones
Golf Course Expansion Architect, Rees Jones
Scoreboard Architect, Kevin Roche

The Clubhouse, by architect Harry Weese, includes spacious lounge and dining areas that overlook the golf course. The floor-to-ceiling perimeter windows are protected by thin shed roofs that create surrounding porches.

The golf course landscape extensively uses native trees. A double row of littleleaf linden trees line the entry drive. Robert Trent Jones returned to Otter Creek in 1982 to update his design so that the course would remain a challenging test of golf that is able to match new club and ball technology.

The original golf course and clubhouse were developed and given to the city by Cummins Engine Company, Inc. in June 1964.

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