Augusta and Gill Holland wanted something innovative and ambitious for Louisville so they took a 110 year-old masonry structure in the heart of the city’s arts district and decided to turn it into the first commercial building with a LEED platinum certification.

The Green Building is a model of architectural preservation with a modern core: an authentic masonry structure, natural lighting, eco-friendly materials, renewable energy systems, solar panels, geothermal wells and most original of all, a recycled denim insulation. This marvel of green architecture was conceived by Doug Pierson from FER Studios.

With 15,000 square foot of mixed-use space, the building houses a restaurant that serves food from local farms (732 Social), an art gallery, event and office spaces. It also boasts an indoor-outdoor courtyard, an urban farm, and a green wall vertical garden.

The Columbus College of Art and Design recently published a report entitled Creative Columbus, which is an inventory study of Central Ohio’s creative industries including the arts, design, performance, media and marketing.

The prominent design fields in the area are fashion, industrial, interior and communication design, with a concentration of businesses in downtown Columbus and many self-employed creatives in based in Clintonville.

During our visit we took a closer look at communication designers and their role in local businesses. We want to highlight CSCA (Columbus Society of Communicating Arts) for its unique and independent approach to design promotion, and its Creative Best Awards initiative that rewards local talents.

A special mention goes out to Ologie, a branding agency that helps businesses with social media strategies, and to Gabe Shultz for his insight on the role that graphic designers play in the corporate world and for keeping the experimental alive through his project Bored Sketchbooks.

Photos: © Jeff Seslar of Chromatic Identity – © Gabe Shultz

General Motors Technical Center, inaugurated in 1956 and designed by Eero Saarinen is America’s largest corporate building ever. Its cost at the time was $125 million, the equivalent of over $800 million today. Otherwise known as the “Versailles of Industry”, this post-war complex is “a reflection of car industry’s consumerist pitch” according to architect Robert A.M. Stern.  Some of its distinctive features are the water tower (pictured above) designed to re-circulate water for the center’s air conditioning system, and the Design Dome (last picture, below) an auditorium and exhibition space of 188 ft diameter width and which is covered by an aluminum skin thinner than an egg shell. With the GM Technical Center, Eero Saarinen pushed technological and architectural boundaries. He used automotive material and assembly line construction methods and also experimented with ceramic glazed brick that were fired in a kiln specifically built on-site by GM. 26 glaze colors were developed in collaboration with the nearby Cranbrook Art Academy.

When the Technical Center opened its doors in the 1950’s, GM published a souvenir guide entitled “Where Today Meets Tomorrow”.  The opening foreword by the company’s president mentions the post-war challenges lying ahead and the rapid technological progress made in the first half of the 20th century. The Technical Center is also referred to as a physical incarnation of GM’s vision “in creating the new and useful (and) in filling the needs and desires of millions of people (…) by applying the best talent, the best equipment and the best facilities available to molding Tomorrow”. Perhaps, by looking at its past, GM can finds a few answers for a more sustainable future.

In 1986, the GM Technical Center was named the most outstanding architectural project of its era by the American Institute of Architects (AIA). In 2000, it was listed in the National Register of Historic Places and the State Register of Historic Sites in 2002. Talks of opening a visitors center have been mentioned in the press but have not yet materialized.

The Design Center (pictured above) boasts an impressive lobby staircase designed by Kevin Roche. The staircase is made of suspended terrazzo slabs that are overlapping each other over a water fountain. Various paintings (including portraits of past presidents and vice presidents) as well as sculptures are displayed inside and outside of the center’s reception area.

San Diego, California, has a very unique aura that encapsulates the quality of life one can be experience there: perfect blue skies, omni-present Pacific waters, laid-back, friendly, and sunny. It is quintessentially Californian.

Around Balboa Park – one of the largest urban parks in the United States, North Park, South Park and Hillcrest are young and vibrant districts filled with restaurants, bars and shops. There is strong potential for more design content in San Diego: from signage to retail, restaurants, products and place branding (see our interview with designer Bennett Peji).

The beach is part of San Diego longest traditions. Surfing culture is strongly associated to the city and its identity (see our report and interview with Tim Bessell). Beyond this reputation San Diego is also one of the most cultural cities in the United States with countless museums and theaters across the city. Our favourite is MCASD at La Jolla where the exhibition MIX on contemporary San Diego architects and designers is showcased until September 2009.

The Pearl is a great addition to the city and the current place-to-be with its very lively bar restaurant, film screenings above the pool and themed parties.

The Modern Phoenix Neighborhood Network is a website featuring a collection of photographs, articles and discussion about mid-century modern architecture in Phoenix, Arizona.

Marlen Grove (pictured above – first 5 from left) is a neighborhood in Phoenix where mid-century modern houses have been preserved and restored in different ways.

Taliesin West is the western base of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. Taliesin West sits within a pristine Sonoran desert landscape at the foot of the McDowell Mountains in North Scottsdale.

Taliesin West used to be Frank Lloyd Wright’s home, studio and laboratory during the winter months. The architecture is highly inspired by Eastern art and design. It also showcases Frank Lloyd Wright’s multi-disciplinary skills.

Today the site is a not-for-profit foundation promoting FLW’s body of work and architecture philosophy. It is also the location of FLW architecture school, one of the smallest accredited architecture schools in the United States, counting only 25 students a year.

Santa Fe, New Mexico, is a place defined by art, craft and architecture and where the boundaries between creative practices are blurred. The city attracts tourists and creatives from around the United States and the world.

Many details in Santa Fe, from signs to storefront and menus (pictured above) are a reflection of the city’s interest in the past and things that are handmade.

American Indian art is an underlying theme and a strong creative influence in Santa Fe. The Institute of American Indian Art is a one-of-a-kind museum and college of fine arts dedicated to the study of indigenous cultures and art.

New Mexico Creates at the recently opened New Mexico History Museum is a different kind of museum store that sells handcrafted jewelry, Native American art work, Hispanic crafts, art glass, and textiles all created by New Mexico artists and artisans. One of their approaches is to showcase products that integrate contemporary design in traditional craftsmaking techniques.

Further from the city center, Railyard Santa Fe is a neighborhood that is being regenerated. It represents the possibility of a more contemporary Santa Fe.

Roadside Relics (pictured above) is a gallery/studio that captures Austin’s quirky nature. Austin is the capital of Texas, but it is also a city that defies all cliches associated to its home state. Austin embraces the old, the new and the unexpected.

Signs are part of the visual landscape of Austin and many of the designs encapsulate the city’s love for American graphic traditions.

San Jose Hotel owned by Liz Lambert is a reconverted motel on South Congress Avenue that has become a local creative community magnet and is a promoter of good design. The presence of San Jose has helped transform South Congress Avenue into a vibrant and contemporary neighborhood (pictured below).

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Russell M. Stanley is the former president of ASID Texas Chapter (American Society of Interior Designers) and was later appointed ASID fellow. After obtaining his degree from Parsons School of Design in 1960, Russell returned to Texas to work for a commercial firm before setting up his own practice.

Russell invited us to see a building that he designed in the seventies and spoke to us about what it was like to be a design student back in the fifties, when Parsons only had 250 students. After seeing his work it was clear that he was strongly influenced by European designs. He mentioned that he never liked the international style movement, despising its homogeneous and box-like approach (”a creativity killer”). However he supports the use of new technologies and believes that interior design should not only based on ideas but also result from manufacturing processes and new technologies that can achieve long-term quality.

Steve Wiman walks Cities x Design through the inspiration, history and curatorial ethos of his super funky story.