The Facades+ conference series returns to Dallas on February 23, 2024. The event will take place at the Statler, an iconic mid-century modern hotel in the heart of downtown Dallas.
The symposium, led by co-chair Yen Ong, partner and cofounder of 5G Studio Collaborative, will feature seven expert-led presentations. This year’s program also contains an attendee networking session, designed to facilitate connections within Dallas’s AEC community.
During breaks make sure to stop by the Methods & Materials exposition hall, where you can speak to product representatives who will help you specify your next project!
The UT Dallas Athenaeum: A New Cultural Hub
Arne Emerson, partner at Morphosis, will share the firm’s work on the Edith and Peter O’Donnell Athenaeum at the University of Texas at Dallas. Emerson will present the Crow Asian Art Museum, which is the first phase of the Athenaeum project and provides a second location for the Crow Collection, which is headquartered at the Trammell Crow Center in the Dallas Arts District. Emerson will speak to the building’s massing and installation of the precast concrete panels which comprise the museum’s enclosure.
The Memorial Facade of St. Sarkis Armenian Church
Next, David Hotson will take the stage to present Saint Sarkis Armenian Orthodox Church in Carrollton, Texas. This is the first time that the project has been presented in Dallas, and the session will be moderated by Mark Lamster, architecture critic of The Dallas Morning News, who called the church “the best new building in Texas.” The facade of the church, assembled from porcelain panels, was printed with a raster image composed of 1.5 million pixels which represent the lives lost in the 1916 Armenian Genocide.
Circularity and High Performance Envelopes
In this roundtable session, Bill Zahner, CEO of Zahner Architectural Metals, will sit down with Natalie Terrill, director of sustainability at Beck Group, to discuss how their firms incorporate sustainability principles into their respective practices. Citing case study examples from projects around the world, Bill will describe how Zahner’s metals are designed for resiliency and recyclability, as well as digital tools the manufacturer uses to optimize shipping logistics and reduce cost and waste. Terrill will cover Beck Group’s efforts to improve material specification, which relies on collaboration with manufacturers who share sustainability goals in common.
Solar Veils and Outdoor Comfort: Shady Brook Office Building
In the afternoon, Gary Cunningham and Michael Bessner of Cunningham Architects will take the stage for a presentation about the Shady Brook Office Building, a commission for Dallas–based retailer Half Price Books. The office complex is enclosed in a screen of Accoya wood slats, which shade outdoor circulation spaces from the harsh Texas sun. The timber brise-soleil was configured in various densities depending on solar orientation, successfully reducing solar heat gain and cooling demand across the structure.
Reframing the Design District: The Virgin Hotel
For the final presentation of the day, Yen Ong of 5G Collaborative, and Lauren Cadieux, associate director at SWOON, the studio, will share their work on the Virgin Hotel in Dallas Design District. The pair will discuss the building’s diamond patterned facade, which was prefabricated prior to installation. Other topics will include the firm’s collaboration with the fabricator, as well as the attending mechanical and logistical details
Click here to view more information and register.
