January 4, 2023 by

Sciuscia

The primary design challenge for this new restaurant was to transform a basement location into an open and light dining space. Given the short time frame for completion and limited budget, an integrated design and fabrication approach was taken to produce a unique result.

The focus of the design was a custom graduated perforated ceiling and wall panel system which had the general effect of forming a delicate surface to alleviate the sense of being below ground and the specific effect of forming acoustical zones within the dining room through variable sound absorption.

The integrated design / production process reduced the cost differential between standard and custom produced components allowing the design intentions to respond more specifically to the client and program needs within the given budget. Largely though the ability to streamline the production process of the custom ceiling and wall panels with design drawings that were simultaneously used as cutting paths for the panel fabrication, the project was designed and built in two months.

Location

New York, NY

Client

Gianfranco and Paula Sorrentino

Year

2002

Size

4,000 sqft

MFA Design Team

Scott Marble, Karen Fairbanks, Todd Rouhe, Jake Nishimura, Stacey Jacovini, Naomi Touger

Metal Coordination

Product & Design

Lighting Design

Richard Shaver Architectural Lighting

General Contractor

Kelleran & Associates, Inc.

Recognition

Design Award, AIA New York

Photography

Gregory Goode Photography

Process

January 4, 2023 by

Housing Ecologies

The Arverne Urban Renewal Area on the Rockaway peninsula – a total area of 308 acres – was cleared in the late 1960s and subsequently left undeveloped, despite numerous proposals ranging from 10,000 units of housing to a multimedia gaming park and hotel complex.

The NYC HPD Request for Proposals, which had considerable support for innovative housing design, was for the western sector of the site and totaled approximately 100 acres with a target density of 8 units an acre. The RFP called for the development of market-rate one and two-family houses. The site was owned by the City and was the largest developable tract of land in New York City. The development was to be a public/private venture in that the housing was to be privately developed market rate housing, the land was donated by the city and the roads and infrastructure subsidized by the state.

This urban design and housing project was commissioned by the Architectural League of New York and Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture as a research proposal in conjunction with an RFP issued by the Housing and Preservation Department for a new housing development in Far Rockaway, New York.

Location

Far Rockaway, Queens, NY

Client

Arverne by the Sea

Project Type

Design Proposal

Year

2001

MFA Design Team

Scott Marble, Karen Fairbanks, Jake Nishimura, Lars Fischer, Todd Rouhe, Benjamin Hummitzsch, Maya Galbis, Laya Massague

Marble Fairbanks was part of the Columbia University project team led by Michael Bell and including Michael Bell Architecture and Mark Rakatansky Studio. The three teams developed independent proposals for separate sections of the site while working collaboratively to develop strategies for housing at this site.

Process

January 3, 2023 by

Tenri Cultural Institute

Tenri Cultural Institute is part of a worldwide network of non-profit organizations sponsored by Tenrikyo Headquarters in Tenri, Japan with the goal of promoting the study of Japanese language and culture, the appreciation of international art forms, and an active cross-cultural dialogue and exchange.

The Institute is comprised of the Tenri School of Japanese Language and the Tenri Gallery. The gallery is used for both public exhibitions and performances and serves as an informal lounge for students to study and socialize before and after classes. Offices and classrooms are separated from the gallery with large surfaces of translucent and transparent glass panels which choreograph views between the adjacent spaces. A large curtain can enclose part of the gallery and provide acoustical control for musical performances.

Location

New York, NY

Client

Tenri Cultural Institute, Michael Yuge, Reverend Okui

Year

2000

Size

5,000 sqft

MFA Design Team

Scott Marble, Karen Fairbanks, Scott Paterson, Todd Rouhe, Jake Nishimura

Consulting Engineer

Norfast Consulting

General Contractor

Up-Rite Construction

Steel Fabricator

Product & Design

Recognition

American Architecture Award, The Chicago Athenaeum Museum

Photography

Gregory Goode Photography

January 3, 2023 by

Open Loft

The site for the project is on the top floor of an industrial loft building in Soho with eastern exposure and roof rights for a new deck and skylights. The client was a photographer who was interested in actively using light as an architecture element to abstractly define space.

The design took full advantage of the top floor location by using custom skylights in the middle and rear of the loft to modulate natural light to create varying perceptions of depth. In both locations, the skylights are designed to allow light to enter both directly through a single layer of clear glass and indirectly through an additional layer of etched glass accentuating the varying qualities of light. Shading devices can also be used to more directly control lighting conditions. A new bedroom mezzanine was added in the back half of the loft which can be either opened or closed to the adjacent living / dining space with sliding etched glass panels. A new roof deck is accessed from the mezzanine extending the living spaces outside with expansive views of the city.

Location

New York, NY

Client

Private Client

Year

2000

Size

1,800 sqft

MFA Design Team

Scott Marble, Karen Fairbanks, Todd Rouhe, David Riebe, Jake Nishimura, Marisa Yiu, Megan Feehan

Structural Engineer

Office of Structural Design

General Contractor

On the Level

Steel Fabricator

Product & Design

Recognition

American Architecture Award, The Chicago Athenaeum Museum

Record Interiors, Architectural Record

Design Award, AIA New York

Photography

Eduard Hueber / Arch Photo, Inc.

January 3, 2023 by

Vertical Townhouse

This project required designing a highly flexible live/work space with areas that could have interchangeable domestic and work functions.

As the founder and owner of a large health care company, the client has a philosophical interest in spatial and managerial organizations which allow patterns of activities, both social and work, to unfold and form based on smaller individual tasks rather than singular bureaucratic demands. This interest led to a detailed exchange of ideas about how to organize program within a home office.

The site consisted of two units of a townhouse on the upper west side of Manhattan which combined, forming a three story space with a roof terrace. The most challenging aspect of the unit was the narrow width of the building—thirteen feet—and solving program relationships vertically between the three floors.

The design evolved from the multiple program demands, often conflicting, that were placed on each space. Boundaries between home and work had to be flexible with the ability to shift quickly and easily both horizontally between rooms and vertically between levels. The lower level could also be separated for out-of-town business associates to stay overnight.