Page 13 - visitorGuide

A Note about Headquarters Architecture

The idea of geology as a natural, outdoor science is evident throughout the design of the Soci-
ety’s headquarters building.Three interior areas are arranged around skylighted atria featuring natu-
ral geologic sculptures and plants.The building brings the outdoors in and takes the indoors out by
providing views of the trees and the Rocky Mountains through floor-to-ceiling glass walls.

Perhaps the most striking quality of the building is the absence of walls with holes for windows.
Instead, a series of horizontal, broadly cantilevered concrete planes, each one larger than the one
below, is supported by vertical arched slabs, which are visually connected only by mullions and
glass. The strength and nature of concrete as the dominant material was emphasized by stripping
away its cold gray sheath to reveal the warm brown aggregates underneath.

The shape of the building, even though somewhat symmetrical in structure, is nonetheless
unique in design. Sections of internal space are related to the reception lobby in “pinwheel” fashion
and are connected by half flights of stairs.To permit the variation of space requirements within each
section, the arched walls project upward from the small base of the building to enclose additional
areas at various locations on each floor and to provide support for the roof. Successive cantilevering
to the top of the building not only provides protection from the bright Colorado sunshine, but also
results in minimum coverage of the building base, freeing the site for natural growth.

Particular care was taken to emphasize the geometric forms of the building through the use of
undulating earth shapes. Grass-covered berms provide visual and acoustic screening of the high-
way and define areas for plants that while indigenous to the general area, require encouragement
to withstand the rigors of the climate along the Front Range of the Rockies. Included among the
many species of plants selected are ponderosa and mugho pine, wild plum, red bud, and sumac;
the shade provided by the latter is often used by deer as a resting place during the day. A feeding
ground for robins, grackles, magpies, and other wild birds was provided along the walk to the front
terrace where chokecherry bushes grow among groves of aspen, juniper, and sedum. Clusters of
daffodils and tulips are a gift fromTjeerd H. van Andel, a former GSA Councilor.

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