Kevin Daly understood that constructing a new building at an established university would be a challenge both inside and out. So when the architect was selected to design an addition for the Evelyn & Mo Ostin Music Center at the University of California, Los Angeles’ (UCLA) Herb Alpert School of Music, he had no choice but to delve into innovative design options.
For starters, the technical requirements for acoustic integrity were numerous: The slab floor had to be isolated from the structure; windows had to be installed to remove the isolation inherent in music studios; and piles had to be driven 75 feet into the ground. Furthermore, the structure had to blend into a campus that, although often considered architecturally haphazard with 200 buildings, has a rich history and specific construction colors.
“There’s a pretty strict palette of masonry at UCLA,” explains Daly. Of the four allowable colors, his firm chose two, and then the creativity truly began.
With red terracotta and blonde building options, his firm reached out to Shildan, a company that creates custom facades for a variety of mostly commercial buildings. The innovative cladding product is made of 35 percent recycled materials and adheres in a manner that allows drainage and air flow, which minimizes maintenance issues and offers high insulation values.
Most importantly, Shildan can create customsized and specifically colored tiles. Using varying techniques of glazing and firing for the UCLA project, they created six tile styles using just two colors.
“We had them produce variations,” Daly says. “That’s what architects have to do; otherwise, you just mimic things of the past.”
The finished product looks like an artfully woven facade, combining modern sleek lines while complementing the existing music building’s brick.
The trend for individualized style is often repeated at Shildan. The company’s most famous use in the Northeast is the iconic New York Times Building. It was months before the bumpy “orange-peel” effect on the tiles – which affect reflection – was perfected.
Photography | Sinziana Velicescu & Shildan Inc.
Like what you see? Get it first with a subscription to ASPIRE DESIGN AND HOME Magazine.
Save
Save