Max Palevsky Residential Commons receives award from Chicago Athenaeum

The Max Palevsky Residential Commons harmonizes with Bartlett Dining Hall to the east and the Regenstein Library to the west in their new quadrangle space.

The Chicago Athenaeum, the only independent museum in the United States that focuses exclusively on architecture and design, recently chose the Max Palevsky Residential Commons for one of its annual American Architecture Awards.

The awards are intended to focus national and international attention on the best new American design and architecture. Forty-one projects were selected from hundreds of submissions from architectural firms throughout the country.

The internationally recognized architect Ricardo Legorreta, working with the Chicago-based VOA Associates, designed the three connected buildings. These buildings harmonize the areas around the Joseph Regenstein Library, including the leafy Bartlett Quadrangle and the more private courtyards adjacent to the dormitories. For the complex’s exteriors, Legorreta used a vibrant color pallete consisting of orange brick found locally in Hyde Park domestic architecture, as well as saturated blues, pinks, yellows and purples more commonly found in his native Mexico.

The complex’s interiors feature dynamic social spaces, abundant natural light, interesting sight lines and airy spaces.

“The University is thrilled that the Athenaeum has recognized Ricardo Legorreta’s superb vision for a student residence that is architecturally striking yet highly functional,” said Curt Heuring, University Architect.

“The Palevsky Commons are a wonderful addition to a campus filled with unique and significant architecture.”

The jury for the American Architecture Awards was held under the auspices of the Icelandic Association of Architects in Reykjavik, Iceland, and all of its jurors were prominent members of Iceland’s architecture and design community.

Drawings of the Max Palevsky Residential Commons and all the other winning projects can be viewed on the Chicago Athenaeum Web site: http://www.chi-athenaeum.org/.