Dutch architecture studio OMA has unveiled its design for a glass-and-metal dome in Chicago that will serve as the headquarters for the American research organisation Discovery Partners Institute.
Designed in partnership with American technology company Jacobs, the Discovery Partners Institute (DPI) headquarters will be eight storeys tall and located within The 78 neighbourhood that is currently under development in the city.
Top: The DPI Headquarters is planned for South Chicago. Photo is by OMA and Lucian R. Above: The building will have a dome-like shape. Photo is by OMA and bloomimages.de
The 200,000-square-feet (18,580-square-metres) DPI innovation centre will have a domed shape, with a floor space that is larger towards the bottom and decreases towards the apex of the structure. The building will have a high-visibility glazed facade punctuated with horizontal metal panels that will serve as solar shades, according to OMA.
The facade will be clad in glass and metal panels. Photo is by OMA and bloomimages.de
It will hold office space, classrooms and laboratories, with the ground floor designated for public spaces such as cafes and retail spaces.
"Programs are organized to maximize efficiency and potential to converge, and variegated layouts are configured around a central zone of collisions," said OMA New York partner Shohei Shigematsu.
"A soft, transparent form and public ground floor offer an open invitation for the community to the building and its net...