KANSAS CITY... 2

Enjoying the company of a friend and colleague the other night, I was raving about a trip we made to Kansas City a couple years back.  3 things summed it up: Rock Chalk Jayhawk (college basketball at it's finest), Bob's Bar (unlisted establishment) and Guy & Mae's (pork ribs).  And afterwards, I realized that I never documented Part 2 of our trip to Kansas City from this past year (unrelated to the above trip/story).  

For me, the architectural education and inspiration imparted on me while traveling is the intangible I am always seeking after.  It involves the people, the weather, the history and food of the place.  All of it has valuable implications on the architecture that we'll see if I can effectively communicate! 

There's so much here in these two buildings.  The aesthetics of post construction demolition, all of a sudden you have a never seen before facade for the Peck's (or Beck's) labeled building. How about the idea of construction cost savings that is intrinsic to density?  One less face to worry about!
And how about the grounding of a building.  Planting it's stake in the ground using big, bold stone and transitioning into smaller scale levels of detail as you rise in elevation.  
And double hung windows are just great.  

Cold and warm materials balanced with some playful color.  Done.
There's a drip edge underneath the concrete beam that we just don't always think about here in Southern California.  The fact that it's hard to see in this photo is a testament to the great detailing and execution.

Sky bridge, sky loft... just don't fill the void.

On Weathering.  
I bet you thought I was going to comment on the fantastically designed and fabricated street sign/security screen.

I pondered the concept of public space after I passed both of these plazas on my walk.  Although both are empty, it was easy to know which one actually gets inhabited by people and which one hasn't seen a person in awhile.  What if both outcomes were the goal?  I don't know.

And to top it all off, Quay Coffee was the perfect office while in Kansas City.  The very polite folks there make an excellent cappuccino and have created a great atmosphere to enjoy (and work in).   

Upon further review, I realized that my first post about Kansas City was lost in the transfer to our latest web platform.  (tears wiped away... ) but GO HERE for my best attempt at re-creating Part 1 in all its enthusiasm.