Let’s face it. Designing a School of Architecture is a desirable yet daunting commission for an architect. For Princeton University’s School of Architecture, New York-based Architectural Research does not disappoint with an addition and renovation that clarifies the building’s plan while maximizing light penetration and views.

The existing condition of studio spaces isolated from administrative offices and the library is here amended in a new configuration that expresses connectivity and transparency. The addition, which contains a new lobby and student lounge and aligns the existing floor levels, is organized around a new blue elevator shaft from which a folded steel staircase is cantilevered. The exterior envelope with large glass panels with ceramic frit patterns are overlaid like folds in a curtain. A new student lounge and double-height lobby adds informal assembly spaces for student and faculty.

The project, which includes a 2000 square foot addition and 6,000 square feet of renovated space, was completed in 2007.