Indiana Historical Society, 1999
During the late 1980’s the Indiana Historical Society looked at their outdated facility
and longed for a new building to house a priceless collection of Indiana letters
and artifacts. Through a generous gift from Eli Lilly in 1978, the Society had amassed
a significant endowment and early in the 1990’s determined they had sufficient capital
to embark on a building program.
We were retained in 1992 along with the Stubbins Associates of Cambridge, Massachusetts,
to design a new headquarters on a site to be determined. It took until early 1995
to sort out the building’s site and complete the programming. The delay was largely
caused by the fact that the state of Indiana had offered a number of potential sites
on state owned land in Indianapolis and the Society carefully evaluated each one
in turn.
Ultimately, the Society moved boldly, dreaming of transforming the institution from
the realm of scholars to a place that included the public in grand spaces that harked
back to the great traditional halls of centuries past. As the design unfolded, the
building realized the institution’s wishes.
In fact, the public spaces are busy
and successful.
One story that deserves telling is related to the first schematic studies presented
to the Building Committee. The final site at 450 West Ohio Street was more or less
agreed to by the State and IHS. An open question was whether the building would
fit as programmed. Ron Ostberg, Stubbin’s lead designer, brought drawings and a
massing model illustrating an asymmetrical design with a modern feel. He proceeded
to present same to the Society’s gathered leadership.
They hated it. Speeches were made unequivocally opposing a modern building form.
Mr. Ostberg returned to Cambridge with the direction to reconsider the design in
progress. We did however determine that the site was indeed big enough for the building.
Ron returned with a new design, symmetrical with the beginnings of a Renaissance
vocabulary that seemed to capture the spirit of the institution. On this occasion,
the reaction was very different. The client loved the building. Speeches were made
praising the design and we were directed to proceed with all due haste.
Although the final detailing evolved significantly over the next 16 months, the
basic concept of the building agreed to in the second major meeting with the Building
Committee became the idea that guided the creation of the architecture.
Functionally, the building is an amalgamation of many different uses including office
space, conservation laboratory, library, archival space, classrooms, dark rooms,
a recording studio, a cafe, exhibition space, a 300 seat theater and, of course,
public spaces like the Great Hall and Canal Courtyard.
Thirteen separate consultants were employed for specialized support that covered
exhibit design, a retail store and security to name but a few. The success of this
building is an example of the power of a well orchestrated group effort whose sum
was greater than the individual parts.
Team:
Owner – Indiana Historical Society/State of Indiana
Architect – CSO and The Stubbins Associates
Lead Designer – Ron Ostberg for TSA
Project Manager – Sam F. Miller (on behalf of CSO)
Structural, Interiors, and Civil Engineering – CSO
Mechanical and Electrical – Moore Engineers
Construction Manager – Geupel DeMars Hagerman
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