Kivett Hall – The Building of the Future

As we push to strive for ways to make our environment better as architects
we are overlooking one of the most sustainable building materials every created. It
holds the key that can reverse the damage that has been done to our planet, and its
right in our own backyard. It carries the most power and strength than any other
material, but it is often overlooked for something else.

Architects and aspiring architects have the power to change the world
through design. They have the power to influence and change the built environment,
so why not give them a building that helps inspire sustainable innovation. A building
that not only inspires, but becomes one of the best-known precedents in the world
for sustainable innovation. A building built entirely of wood!

Kivett Hall, The New School of Architecture and Design is made almost
entirely of wood from its floors, walls, ceilings, and structure. It’s not only made
entirely by wood, but it pushes the limits on what wood can do. Wood no longer has
to be viewed as a “safe” material. It can now be viewed as the material for the
future. Kivett Hall uses wood in a different way. It celebrates the use of wood
throughout its four floors. It exposes its impressive Glulam and Cross-Laminated
timber structure and Eastern White Pine finishes, celebrating the woods natural
beauty. Kivett Hall features an inner atrium with cantilevered studios overlooking
the inner core of the school. These unique cantilevered spaces offer a variety of
experiences for the user inspiring different ways to learn and collaborate
throughout the building. The warmth of the wood makes Kivett Hall a comfortable
and warm place to learn.

Kivett Hall is not only beautiful and thoughtfully designed, but it is a great
example for future sustainable design. Many do not know that construction and
building operations are one of the highest contributors to greenhouses gases, as
well as the materials used to build them. Concrete and Steel, although extremely
reliable materials, they make up 8% of greenhouse gases. As architects we have the
power to change this, we have the power to reverse what we done to our
environment just by the designs we make and the materials we use. Wood is a
powerful material and just like concrete and steel wood it can contribute to
greenhouse gases, but only if it goes unused and decomposes. When wood is cut and
used it stores its carbon, which means it is not being released into the atmosphere.
Wood is the most natural building material we have, after all it is one of Mother
Natures best creations. Kivett Hall celebrates all Mother Nature has to offer and will
be the future of sustainable design.