The Great Room
The amount of time in which people physically occupy the Great Room is not proportional to the amount of comments that I am receiving about this space … the room certainly does seem to have a “greatness” factor that is causing such a passionate reaction.
Certainly the Great Room has "great" features: it is open, has vaulted ceilings, wood floors, and a hearth. It has views through many large windows; as one respondent said, “It is nice to feel like you are outside without leaving the building”. However, there is concern that it is not being used, that is not being used the right way, and that it is not useful. Therefore, how can it most effectively be used?
I decided to see what other universities were calling “Great Rooms” and found 2 general program use typologies:
1. a casual, communal lounge promoting private study, relaxation and spontaneous interaction.
2. a ceremonial space for formal gatherings and special occasions, often rented out to unaffiliated groups
I know that the Krasnow’s Great Room ideally accomplishes both program types at different times. Elements such as the hearth and “openness to all” reinforce that the Great Room is indeed a place of gathering and coming together. However, as Jim Olds pointed out in his blog “Upstairs Downstairs” (http://krasnow.blogspot.com/), there is a larger opportunity for academic and social collaboration at Krasnow than currently exists.
Therefore, if there exists a need for “collaborative activity” and “a greater sense of community”, and you have at your disposal a place for gathering and coming together, How can we charge this space with architecture or specific programming to meet this goal?
Here are some of the ideas that have been put forth thus far in the interviews; feel free to add your comments and ideas:
- Couches and free coffee – the free coffee generates a flow of people and stimulates productivity, the couches offer a “touch-down” place to interact
- Exterior patio/courtyard as an exterior extension of the Great Room and provide a link to other spaces such as the kitchen
- Storage and process for setting up and tearing down banquet space – the existing furniture is not mobile. Adding any furniture pieces (especially large, heavy items) will make the process more cumbersome.
posted by Meredith Banasiak, ANFA @ 11:30 PM
2 Comments:
Of course, free coffee (and tea!)
would be great. Maybe another table
and chairs, too.
My main concern is
the acoustics in the great room.
If you have a moderately sized group
or larger, it's hard to understand
anyone trying to address the whole
group. Maybe sound-absorption panels
would help?
Does anyone think that the GR is too large for parties?
I do.
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