ASK Studio
The rise of anti-smoking regulation has had a profound impact on outdoor space planning, with smokers no longer allowed to congregate beside public entries. Yet this project serves as a reminder that smokers aren’t extinct by quietly celebrating an activity that has gone from banal to banned. “What I love about it is not only is it driven by a concept that's a cultural phenomenon,” juror Joel Sanders said. “It dares to take on something which is now culturally frowned upon.” Envisioned as a sculptural element in the landscape beside the apartment complex whose residents are the primary users, the Corinthian Gardens Smokers’ Shelter in Des Moines, Iowa, comprises simple—and nonflammable—materials in a 275-square-foot structure. Concrete benches are backed with perforated metal screens; LEDs, aligned with roofing corrugations and vertical metal supports, provide security lighting after dark. It’s the sort of structure that has the feel of a private clubhouse for the tobacco-initiated; juror Cary Bernstein said, “it makes you want to smoke so you can be in it.”
Click here to see all of the winners of the 2014 Residential Architect Design Awards.
Drawings
Project Credits
Project Corinthian Gardens Smokers' Shelter, Des Moines, Iowa
Architect ASK Studio, Des Moines, Iowa—Brent Schipper, AIA
GeneralContractor Koester Construction—Jack Daugherty
Developer Newbury Living—Sharon Wolfe
Photography Cameron Campbell, AIA
ProjectSize 275 square feet
ConstructionCost $160 per square foot
Materials and Sources
Exterior Siding American Plastic Lumber american-plasticlumber.com; McNichols mcnichols.com; Polygal polygal-northamerica.com
Flooring Concrete
Hardware Aztec; McNichols mcnichols.com; Polygal polygal-northamerica.com
LightingFixtures Bega (LED) bega-us.com; Kim Lighting kimlighting.com
Paints and Finishes PPG Pittsburgh Paints ppgpittsburghpaints.com
Roofing Corrugated Metals corrugated-metals.com; custom steel plate
