Structure as Architecture - School of Architecture

concealing it from the outside. The resulting double-height blind-colon-

nade that visually functions as a base to the building, runs along the Wood

Street frontage until the skin moves further into the building to accom-

modate the steps and ramp to the main entrance (Fig. 4.4). At pavement

level, due to their size and modest spacing, the columns contribute a

strong sense of rhythm. In the evening, when down-lit, the concrete

BUILDING EXTERIOR 55

▲4.3 Yerba Buena Lofts, San Francisco, USA, Stanley Saitowitz Office/Natoma

Architects, 2002. Walls and slabs modulate the front façade.

▲4.5 RAC Control Centre, Bristol, England, Nicholas Grimshaw &

Partners, 1995. Structural piers modulate the base perimeter.

▲4.4 88 Wood Street, London, England, Richard Rogers
Partnership, 2000. Columns introduce rhythm and modulation at
ground floor level.