Maybe something by Antoine Predock? That's his area of the world. The University of New Mexico's SOA building is his design. I think Santa Fe is close by, check that place out. Can't help much more than that. Sorry.
In general, Predock's work in Albuquerque is somewhat forgettable. The only 2 projects to note are the Rio Grande Nature Center and the new Architecture Building on the UNM Campus.
While you are in the UNM Area, you can see the infamous Bart Prince house, which is always good for a few WTF? photos to show to friends later.
He has a few other projects around town, including:
and this:
That pretty much covers the extent of architecture done by architects that have a name outside New Mexico.
_____
After that, there is some relatively nice work done by a few of the locals:
RMKM did a pretty nice addition to the Albuquerque Museum a while back
also a fire station
of the corporate offices in town, they have the best designed work and the only stuff worth talking about.
_____
On the historical end, there is the Kimo Theater
as well as just visiting the Old Town plaza.
other than that, driving up Central from the university allows you to see the few remaining Route 66 Motels and signage.
I've put together a Google Map with all of these sites plus a few others all marked. If I think of anything else, I'll try to add it on.
If you have the time, Santa Fe is a little less than an hours drive from Albuquerque and there is some pretty interesting things to see there as well.
Drive up the Turquoise Trail to Tinkertown! It's a strange collection of junk-turned-folk art in a building made out of glass bottles that people tend to either love or hate. Definitely worth a look either way.
Uhmm... another idea? Drive out on some country roads (if at all possible).
There's lots of combination "vernacular" updated to modernism buildings all over New Mexico.
This is way far away but it illustrates my point more.
This is Gila, New Mexico. And there's 5 or 6 schools or architecture here. A little googie, spanish, american setler, bauhaus and a smidge of international style.
Perhaps what makes New Mexican architecture interesting is how easily it blends with contemporary architecture.
This is the Northern New Mexico Google map i collated from earlier forums on Albuquerque. There's extra stuff on there you may find useful, such as Marble Brewery's top-rated IPA. Also includes points of interest outside the city.
Enjoy! And it comes Archinect Travels and Vado certfied
If you have a car and a few days, I would recommend going up to the old town of Corrales (some beautiful 18th century adobe houses and shops on the main road) and exploring the NATURE of New Mexico because, this is where the real beauty is. If you have the opportunity to check out the hot springs at Jemez Springs, you won't regret it.
go to unm campus.
eat at the frontier
go across the street and check out predock's new art and architecture building.
walk up to nob hill and check that out
go down to old town and walk around a bit
go down to the rio grande nature center and check that out
walk up the river behind some of the horse ranches and feed a horse a manzano or two
drive up to the turquoise trail and stop in madrid and check that out
drive up to santa fe and check that out
if you wanna email me i may be able to put you into contact with some local architects.
Oh, New Mexico is probably one of the best places in the U.S.
It's probably one of the smartest states in the country while being probably one of the most backwards states. And you can't really be an asshole in New Mexico because it will more than likely get you killed.
Not to mention, it's about 85% the size of France with 1/50th the population.
holl's turbulence house is up in abiquiu, if you can arrange a visit.
the national hispanic cultural center on bridge @ 4th street is a predock-involved project that has nice some nice features.
then eat at el modelo about 100 yards away, they have a little patio on the north side.
take a drive up rio grande blvd from I-40, check out the horse estates and wineries. there's also los poblanos inn, which is a john gaw meem project. ask to see the alexander girard cottage which has a bunch of his textiles.
we're moving our office into a space across the street from marble brewery in about 30 days. we'll see what effect that has on the work....
Definitely follow the advice of the other posters- I'd say Vado sums it up better than anyone- take the T. Trail through Madird, Stop in the Mine Shaft for a drink and some green chili cheese fries and then go play in Santa Fe. Do the recommended stuff in Abq too!
Lorem's Right about the nature- it's inspiring. Jemez rocks, but you can't really ignore the scenery anywhere in NM so you'll get a lot of it just driving around.
Also- go to the Range Cafe (the one in Bernalillo is the best)- it's my dad's restaurant so I've got to give it a plug. Besides Berna's a trip!
...Although, I must confess, Los Cuates has my favorite NM food for sure! It's close enough to the Airport- so you should be able to get there.
Unicorn: I'm with you on the smartest/most backward/can't be an asshole description-It certainly made me on point!
It's nice to see all the good stuff in NM all on one thread. It's easy to forget it sometimes when all you see on a daily basis is strip centers and suburban tract homes. Or when you have the pleasure of driving down I-40 past the Whitener Law Firm building, which should go on the "what not to see in Albuquerque" list.
last time I was in Albuquerque in June it was 126 degrees....so dress casual...or don't dress at all. I wandered up to Santa Fe and low an behold I saw my first man wearing a womans summer dress. Then went and was wined and dined in a Restaurant with a naked lady painting which hung over the bar....I can't imagine what that place cost to eat because my 1st wife's friend "Eyeball" picked up the tab, and he was on the board of directors for the Santa Fe Opera. I know it was well beyond my financal reach at the time. There is alot of schock in Santa Fe but there is some darn (not swearing) grand art there.
el Jeffe: i loved marble's IPA so much that my gal and i filled the car with six packs for the rest of our roadtrip around Valles Caldera. i loved it so much my gal had two sixers mailed to me on my birthday. That's when you know you got a keeper. If you're ever coming out to LA, i'll pay time and a half if you bring me one in your check-in luggage. Yeah, that's how good it is.
moving to an office across the street from the brewery? are you guys hiring?
Stayed at the Casa de Suenos in ABQ, a John Gaw Meem artists' colony refurbished into a hotel, only to discover a Bart Prince-designed addition built on the front. Owners want to tear it down, fire inspectors wont let anybody enter it, per the owner Prince hates it, won't visit it and won't mind if it's torn down. Either way it's a novel pairing and apparently one of Prince's first built projects.
Oh no! Not my delicious Los Cuates! I moved away from NM 5 years ago and visit only once a year or so.
What's happening in Rio Rancho is definitely interesting. There is incredible suburban sprawl and every time I visit there's more.
When I was growing up, there was only mesa and a highway. Now there's neighborhood after neighborhood. They've even built a concert hall and a movie production studio for Lion's Gate out there. I think they're talking about building a new urban hub/downtown too. My NM friends call it "the new LA" hahahahaha. Crazy.
marlin - yeah their beer is very good - it'll make office hospitality that much easier!
alexi - you're talking about mesa del sol, southwest of the airport. a masterplanned mini-city that has abq studios, schott solar and a predock 'town center' building that i believe is still vacant. it'll take off when the economy improves.
azcue - if you want a cool hike that ends with a stunning panoramic view of the rio grande valley, try a hike at tent rocks nat'l. monument. we took our kids there a few weeks ago. an awesome hike thru a sandstone slot canyon surrounded by tent-shaped rock formations. highly recommended.
Rio Rancho is also planning a town center or something of the sort. It's planned around where the Santa Ana Star Center is located and I think HP just built a new building up there as well. Supposedly it will be the "downtown" of Rio Rancho...if such a thing is possible.
HP has a recently completed building there - i think it's a call center. the city of rio rancho has their offices there, as well as the santa ana start center, and UNM just completed a building there.
that's it for now.
a total pain in the ass to go get building permits in the middle of friggin nowhere. and i mean nowhere...
Hassan Fathy is one of my favorite architects, and his only work in north america is in new mexico. he didn't finish it, and it's small, but it's great. Hassan Fathy was a master.
dar al islam is a little over an hour nw of santa fe. it would be first on my list.
i believe the hispanic center is by Peter Marquez who went to unm and is up in santa fe i believe. i went to school with one of the guys from rmkm they have a great office space downtown. also if you go hiking make sure you take a large plastic garbage bag with you. if you fall off the trail and break your leg you can cut a hole in the bag and where it as a poncho so you don't suffer from hypothermia as it can get very cold in nuevo mexico.
I love New Mexico, I could live there.
Freaky weather, mexican food, great art, spectacular nature? what more can you ask for.
here's hail and sun at the Georgia O'Keefe museum in Santa Fe.
C.K. ----- Where is that last photo taken? Is that in New Mexico or New Urbanville? It looks like you took it straight out of Andres Duany's wet dream.
just the interior courtyard of a hotel in Santa Fe. I don't know much about Santa Fe, but I am curious if this cuteness was intentional or it just happened.
In fact, most of New Mexico has been "New Urbanism" for about 500 years. That's one of my favorite hotels in Santa Fe... The Hotel Plaza Real (only because of proximity sake).
It's a pretty New Mexican form for building. Older buildings in New Mexican often don't have entrances directly on public roads (at least originally). Instead, they often have wall private roads and courtyards. To enter a building, one must walk around the building, into the courtyard and down the appropriate hallway to get to the "public" door. I suppose it is for fortification reasons and perhaps a relic of the Medieval era as most of New Mexico was "settled" in the 16th century?
Albuquerque Architecture - What to see
Heading to New Mexico in 2 weeks. What is there worth seeing from an architects standpoint?
Maybe something by Antoine Predock? That's his area of the world. The University of New Mexico's SOA building is his design. I think Santa Fe is close by, check that place out. Can't help much more than that. Sorry.
In general, Predock's work in Albuquerque is somewhat forgettable. The only 2 projects to note are the Rio Grande Nature Center and the new Architecture Building on the UNM Campus.
While you are in the UNM Area, you can see the infamous Bart Prince house, which is always good for a few WTF? photos to show to friends later.
He has a few other projects around town, including:
and this:
That pretty much covers the extent of architecture done by architects that have a name outside New Mexico.
_____
After that, there is some relatively nice work done by a few of the locals:
RMKM did a pretty nice addition to the Albuquerque Museum a while back
also a fire station
of the corporate offices in town, they have the best designed work and the only stuff worth talking about.
_____
On the historical end, there is the Kimo Theater
as well as just visiting the Old Town plaza.
other than that, driving up Central from the university allows you to see the few remaining Route 66 Motels and signage.
I've put together a Google Map with all of these sites plus a few others all marked. If I think of anything else, I'll try to add it on.
If you have the time, Santa Fe is a little less than an hours drive from Albuquerque and there is some pretty interesting things to see there as well.
Drive up the Turquoise Trail to Tinkertown! It's a strange collection of junk-turned-folk art in a building made out of glass bottles that people tend to either love or hate. Definitely worth a look either way.
http://tinkertown.com/
Thanks Kestrel, but the link doesn't work. I'd really like to check out those "houses" too.
Uhmm... another idea? Drive out on some country roads (if at all possible).
There's lots of combination "vernacular" updated to modernism buildings all over New Mexico.
This is way far away but it illustrates my point more.
This is Gila, New Mexico. And there's 5 or 6 schools or architecture here. A little googie, spanish, american setler, bauhaus and a smidge of international style.
Perhaps what makes New Mexican architecture interesting is how easily it blends with contemporary architecture.
also make sure to look up the land art that is scattered around the state. if you are into that sort of thing.
if you can make it up to taos, there are a lot of 'earthships' tucked in and around that area.
You have to spend a night at the Vado Motel...who knows you might meet the man himself.
This is the Northern New Mexico Google map i collated from earlier forums on Albuquerque. There's extra stuff on there you may find useful, such as Marble Brewery's top-rated IPA. Also includes points of interest outside the city.
Enjoy! And it comes Archinect Travels and Vado certfied
Go see fire station 21. Hotness IMO
If you have a car and a few days, I would recommend going up to the old town of Corrales (some beautiful 18th century adobe houses and shops on the main road) and exploring the NATURE of New Mexico because, this is where the real beauty is. If you have the opportunity to check out the hot springs at Jemez Springs, you won't regret it.
a must see!!!
here is what i would do if i were you:
in albucrackee:
go to unm campus.
eat at the frontier
go across the street and check out predock's new art and architecture building.
walk up to nob hill and check that out
go down to old town and walk around a bit
go down to the rio grande nature center and check that out
walk up the river behind some of the horse ranches and feed a horse a manzano or two
drive up to the turquoise trail and stop in madrid and check that out
drive up to santa fe and check that out
if you wanna email me i may be able to put you into contact with some local architects.
thanks for the plug Marlin!
I just want to thank you all for the advice. I never even imagined there was this much to see in NM.
I'm quite stunned that this post has produced so many responses!
Oh, New Mexico is probably one of the best places in the U.S.
It's probably one of the smartest states in the country while being probably one of the most backwards states. And you can't really be an asshole in New Mexico because it will more than likely get you killed.
Not to mention, it's about 85% the size of France with 1/50th the population.
loremipsum was conceived and created in the great state of New Mexico.
I am arguably the best thing to ever come out of Clovis, (if you've been there, you would have to agree)
Las Cruces, Represent!
I can't say I'm the best thing to come out of LC. The ba-ba-ba-bomb came out of it!
holl's turbulence house is up in abiquiu, if you can arrange a visit.
the national hispanic cultural center on bridge @ 4th street is a predock-involved project that has nice some nice features.
then eat at el modelo about 100 yards away, they have a little patio on the north side.
take a drive up rio grande blvd from I-40, check out the horse estates and wineries. there's also los poblanos inn, which is a john gaw meem project. ask to see the alexander girard cottage which has a bunch of his textiles.
we're moving our office into a space across the street from marble brewery in about 30 days. we'll see what effect that has on the work....
i'm in abq, so ask questions.
working across the street from Marble would be really nice.
Can I just say how happy this thread makes me :D
I was raised in burque!
Definitely follow the advice of the other posters- I'd say Vado sums it up better than anyone- take the T. Trail through Madird, Stop in the Mine Shaft for a drink and some green chili cheese fries and then go play in Santa Fe. Do the recommended stuff in Abq too!
Lorem's Right about the nature- it's inspiring. Jemez rocks, but you can't really ignore the scenery anywhere in NM so you'll get a lot of it just driving around.
Also- go to the Range Cafe (the one in Bernalillo is the best)- it's my dad's restaurant so I've got to give it a plug. Besides Berna's a trip!
...Although, I must confess, Los Cuates has my favorite NM food for sure! It's close enough to the Airport- so you should be able to get there.
Unicorn: I'm with you on the smartest/most backward/can't be an asshole description-It certainly made me on point!
It's nice to see all the good stuff in NM all on one thread. It's easy to forget it sometimes when all you see on a daily basis is strip centers and suburban tract homes. Or when you have the pleasure of driving down I-40 past the Whitener Law Firm building, which should go on the "what not to see in Albuquerque" list.
alexi - you know los cuates was bought by little anita's and the quality has really tanked right?
i forgot - take a drive up to rio rancho and see the endless bleakness of suburban hell. it's really quite an amazing landscape.
you could take the rail runner train up to santa fe - interesting views too.
last time I was in Albuquerque in June it was 126 degrees....so dress casual...or don't dress at all. I wandered up to Santa Fe and low an behold I saw my first man wearing a womans summer dress. Then went and was wined and dined in a Restaurant with a naked lady painting which hung over the bar....I can't imagine what that place cost to eat because my 1st wife's friend "Eyeball" picked up the tab, and he was on the board of directors for the Santa Fe Opera. I know it was well beyond my financal reach at the time. There is alot of schock in Santa Fe but there is some darn (not swearing) grand art there.
el Jeffe: i loved marble's IPA so much that my gal and i filled the car with six packs for the rest of our roadtrip around Valles Caldera. i loved it so much my gal had two sixers mailed to me on my birthday. That's when you know you got a keeper. If you're ever coming out to LA, i'll pay time and a half if you bring me one in your check-in luggage. Yeah, that's how good it is.
moving to an office across the street from the brewery? are you guys hiring?
Stayed at the Casa de Suenos in ABQ, a John Gaw Meem artists' colony refurbished into a hotel, only to discover a Bart Prince-designed addition built on the front. Owners want to tear it down, fire inspectors wont let anybody enter it, per the owner Prince hates it, won't visit it and won't mind if it's torn down. Either way it's a novel pairing and apparently one of Prince's first built projects.
azcue: i enjoyed this book on Albuquerque.
Oh no! Not my delicious Los Cuates! I moved away from NM 5 years ago and visit only once a year or so.
What's happening in Rio Rancho is definitely interesting. There is incredible suburban sprawl and every time I visit there's more.
When I was growing up, there was only mesa and a highway. Now there's neighborhood after neighborhood. They've even built a concert hall and a movie production studio for Lion's Gate out there. I think they're talking about building a new urban hub/downtown too. My NM friends call it "the new LA" hahahahaha. Crazy.
oh- and NM isn't always hot- it definitely gets chilly. Check out the weather before you go and pack something for when the sun goes down.
marlin - yeah their beer is very good - it'll make office hospitality that much easier!
alexi - you're talking about mesa del sol, southwest of the airport. a masterplanned mini-city that has abq studios, schott solar and a predock 'town center' building that i believe is still vacant. it'll take off when the economy improves.
azcue - if you want a cool hike that ends with a stunning panoramic view of the rio grande valley, try a hike at tent rocks nat'l. monument. we took our kids there a few weeks ago. an awesome hike thru a sandstone slot canyon surrounded by tent-shaped rock formations. highly recommended.
forgot it's 415 instead of 315 pixels....
Rio Rancho is also planning a town center or something of the sort. It's planned around where the Santa Ana Star Center is located and I think HP just built a new building up there as well. Supposedly it will be the "downtown" of Rio Rancho...if such a thing is possible.
HP has a recently completed building there - i think it's a call center. the city of rio rancho has their offices there, as well as the santa ana start center, and UNM just completed a building there.
that's it for now.
a total pain in the ass to go get building permits in the middle of friggin nowhere. and i mean nowhere...
Hassan Fathy is one of my favorite architects, and his only work in north america is in new mexico. he didn't finish it, and it's small, but it's great. Hassan Fathy was a master.
dar al islam is a little over an hour nw of santa fe. it would be first on my list.
http://www.daralislam.org/
i believe the hispanic center is by Peter Marquez who went to unm and is up in santa fe i believe. i went to school with one of the guys from rmkm they have a great office space downtown. also if you go hiking make sure you take a large plastic garbage bag with you. if you fall off the trail and break your leg you can cut a hole in the bag and where it as a poncho so you don't suffer from hypothermia as it can get very cold in nuevo mexico.
vado - i thought ap was involved in it for a while and then exited the project after a general direction had been set?
could be. i was gone before it was built.
Drove across NM 2 weeks ago, it was snowing. Dress in layers!
Don't forget to pack the allergy meds as well. Spring is in full bloom.
why is everything adobey in New Mexico?
I love New Mexico, I could live there.
Freaky weather, mexican food, great art, spectacular nature? what more can you ask for.
here's hail and sun at the Georgia O'Keefe museum in Santa Fe.
Vado....you forgot to mention....bring along a bottle of Kicking Chicken...cause you might be there for awhile and in alot of pain.
actually c.k it's New Mexican food, not mexican food. different chilis. :)
and lots of it, vado
yeah man the green chilis
C.K. ----- Where is that last photo taken? Is that in New Mexico or New Urbanville? It looks like you took it straight out of Andres Duany's wet dream.
just the interior courtyard of a hotel in Santa Fe. I don't know much about Santa Fe, but I am curious if this cuteness was intentional or it just happened.
No, it's not New Urbanism.
In fact, most of New Mexico has been "New Urbanism" for about 500 years. That's one of my favorite hotels in Santa Fe... The Hotel Plaza Real (only because of proximity sake).
It's a pretty New Mexican form for building. Older buildings in New Mexican often don't have entrances directly on public roads (at least originally). Instead, they often have wall private roads and courtyards. To enter a building, one must walk around the building, into the courtyard and down the appropriate hallway to get to the "public" door. I suppose it is for fortification reasons and perhaps a relic of the Medieval era as most of New Mexico was "settled" in the 16th century?
Also to note, a lot of that cuteness in New Mexico has been phased out because the roads, pathways et cetera are too narrow for emergency vehicles.
too bad, it has an incredibly intimate scale.
yes unicorn, that is Hotel Plaza Real, I had forgotten the name. lovely courtyard.
It should be noted the level of Disnification that is Santa Fe.
Block this user
Are you sure you want to block this user and hide all related comments throughout the site?
Archinect
This is your first comment on Archinect. Your comment will be visible once approved.