From the outset, it was apparent that the importance of the project for this studio would be in creating a connection between two locally unique public promenades; the traditional downtown strip and the riverwalk. This project proposes to make this connection through program, landscape urbanism, and architectural urbanism.    

The programmatic proposal is that of an artist-in-residence facility. The invited artists are experts in the fields of visual, literary, performing and musical arts. During their stay, the facility, the community, and the beautiful West Michigan region offer opportunities for these artists to rejuvenate, collaborate, and create.    

The landscape urbanism proposal draws on the language of an earlier group project that addressed the riverfront and Harbor Drive at the bottom of Washington Ave. A public plaza is created as the building is pulled back from the street edge. Shallow pools of water are imposed on the surface with benches and boulders placed across the site. The materiality of the plaza creates a visual and experiential connection to the riverfront plaza while the surface patterning is informed by the architecture.    

Finally, the building asserts itself as an urban solution. It is consistent with the existing conditions through its massing, facade depth and transparency, and by maintaining the traditional cornice line. Building technology also plays a large factor in the architecture. The building's structure is predominantly pre-fabricated and the envelope is made increasingly dynamic through the implementation of a greenscreen, liveroof, and articulating fenestration.