Juliana Curran Terian Pratt Pavilion

In 2003 hMa was commissioned by Pratt Institute to design a new pavilion for the center of the Institute Campus.  The new pavilion was to serve as a new campus center for Pratt students, and would also be the first piece of an overall Pratt Campus master plan and redesign, giving focus and form to the Institute's main green quadrangle.  The pavilion was also commissioned to join two existing loft buildings together into a single entity:  a new 200,000 square-foot Pratt Design Center, housing all of the design arts under one roof.  The Juliana Curran Terian Pratt Pavilion officially opened in 2007.

Pratt Pavilion began with a gift by Pratt Board Member Juliana Curran Terian.  The Center evolved through a series of discussions with the Pratt Board, who wanted a pavilion that would serve as a public building for student gatherings, as a new gallery to showcase Pratt student and faculty work, as well as a building that – through the beauty and thoughtfulness of its construction details and materials -  would be a physical example of the creative design work that goes on at the Institute.  The new pavilion was also the first building to be built in an overall Master Plan re-design for the Pratt Campus, which refocused campus buildings toward Pratt's main green quadrangle.  Previously, the Institute buildings had their main entries turned away from the quadrangle, entering from surrounding urban streets.  The backs of buildings faced the quad.  Pratt Pavilion was the first of a series of Master Plan interventions to turn buildings around 180 degrees, so that they faced the main quadrangle, and gave a sense of importance to the school's primary public green space.  

Pratt Board member Bruce Gitlin participated in the design, donating hand-rubbed stainless steel panels that he developed in conversations with the architects for the pavilion's cladding.  The hand-rubbed panels are a key aspect of the final project's overall projection of design values about Pratt Institute to the general public.  Pratt is a Design Institute based in Brooklyn, New York, with a long history of ground-breaking studies in all aspects of design, including fashion, industrial design, interior design, graphic design, and architecture.  

Belwo are images from hanrahan Meyers' presentation of their design process for the Pratt Pavilion project for the Architectural League of New York's design competition:  Starts and Finishes.  The images include hMa's original massing watercolor for the building presented to the Pratt Board. The images also show hMa's original massing model of the project.

To see more about Hanrahan Meyers architects' works, including Master Plans, public buildings, and educational buildings, visit their website, www.hanrahanMeyers.com.

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