Architecture Program Report Tulane University New Orleans ...

RICHARDSON MEMORIAL HALL
Designed in 1907 by New Orleans architects Andry and Bendernagel,
Richardson Memorial originally housed Tulane's Medical School.
Characteristic of its original function, the American-Romanesque plan
features 3000 square foot rooms (originally the medical laboratories) in the
symmetrical wings of the second, third and fourth floors. While not a
seamless fit, the adaptation of the building for its current use as an
architecture school did not present enormous difficulties.
The general layout of its new use essentially conforms to its original
function; the laboratories are now studio spaces. The upper floors (third
and fourth floors) house first through fourth-year students. The thesis class
occupies the attic space. Faculty offices and another large lecture room
that originally, if ironically given its new use for intermittent juries, served as
the operating (dissection) theater also occupy the fourth floor. The main
lecture hall, the smaller raked seating lecture hall, the Architecture Library,
and the Architecture Gallery are situated on the second floor—the school’s
piano nobile.
The monumental granite staircase announces the main entry, ascending one
story to a large porch that faces Tulane's main quadrangle—the oldest and
most architecturally significant part of campus. Hence, the School of
Architecture maintains a highly visible and recognized position on campus.
Internal to the School, the grand entry provides immediate contact with its
‘public functions’—the gallery, library, and lecture halls—while also
providing a dynamic and flexible space for juries, receptions, student work
exhibits, and casual meetings. In addition, the internal stair, mimicking the
grand staircase that engages the main quadrangle, ascends directly to the
administrative offices. Thus, there is a constant, easy flow between
instructional and workspaces, and between student, faculty and
administration in the School.
Faculty offices and work spaces are located on the ground floor, as are the
support services for the School of Architecture, including the Mintz
Computer Lab, the Shop, the Slide Library, the Digital Imaging and
Fabrication Center, the Tulane Regional Urban Design Center Offices, the
Student Publications Office, the School of Architecture Publications Office,
the Dark Room, and lastly, The Drawing Board, a breakfast and lunch deli.
As may be expected in a southern city governed by gentle weather in the
winter months and romantically shaded by large oak trees, there are
several outside ‘work’ spaces immediately adjacent to the School of
Architecture. Due to its prominent location, the most visible of these is an
‘outdoor room’ directly in front of the main staircase. This area is actively
used for seminars, critiques, and informal meetings. Given the succession
of various architectural elements—the internal and external grand
staircases, the expansive porch, and the outdoor room, these areas are
favorite spots for ranging from the aforementioned outdoor class sessions
to the annual graduation ceremony and reception. Additional outdoor
spaces are located on the north side of the building. Building and materials
workshops spill out into this area, providing a necessarily resilient zone for
experimentation in materials and methods. Finally, the woodshop extends
into an outdoor space that is used for large-scale construction projects,