CooperstownMain Office Cooper House Barn 21 Cooper Place Cooperstown, NY (607) 547-5060
New York City Branch Office Ocean Parkway, Brooklyn, NY. (917) 397-2689
Teresa Drerup / Virginia Ofer / Kurt Ofer e-mail format: first initial then last name@altonview.com
“Architecture should take her right place at the head of all the arts, because she can most clearly manifest that divine attribute in man which is connoted in creation; and the creative imagination is no more concerned with facts alone than it is with fancies only; it deals with the material of scientific knowledge, and with the causes that underlie phenomena, in order to evolve new combinations of its own.” Cook.
The visual input of Catalonia is pure and direct. The patterns, from the clear light, is almost too much to process. The visual input nearly melts your mind. The visual theme of the photos above is what we call Infinite Horizontal. A vernacular response in Catalonia is to extend forms horizontally. As you stand …
The three of us, that is, all of AVA, taken at the Santuari de Nostra Senyora dels Angels in the hills outside of Girona, Spain, last week. We all enjoy cycling, and the gravel and dirt roads in Catalonia offer to us ample bandwidth to recharge our batteries, which include: design cultural culinary physical As …
In our recent travel to Morocco, we had the great experience of staying in two riads. A riad is characterized by a center courtyard, around which all of the rooms and spaces are organized. This traditional house typology is typically found in Morocco, and also Andalusia. Generally two or more stories, the interior …
AND AT THE BOTTOM, A QUICK SMATTERING OF WHAT IS COOKING
FARM CREDIT EAST, COOPERSTOWN BRANCH
Location- Springfield, New York Client – Farm Credit East Status – Completed 2018 Program – 22,000 SF Office facility
Farm Credit East is a financial institution that lends solely to the agriculture market. Given the strong agricultural traditions of the Cooperstown region, their new facility just north of the village is a welcome addition to the community.
Their new building needed to be resonant with local agricultural building traditions. Three gently sloping shed forms of the building are one of the responses to this tradition. Another is the taller central form, with two subservient flanking forms. Together, the composition is tied directly into the landscape, in the same manner that regional barns are grounded at the earth.
Farm Credit East wanted to take advantage of the great features of their site, which included views of the north end of the lake, a gently sloping lawn to the south, and the trees which frame every vista. Our response was to place very tall windows toward the lake to bring those views inside. A row of clerestory windows the length of the building modulates and controls the south light as the sun crosses the sky. In this manner, FCE associates are given a constant reference to the exterior. And the movement and play of light during the day is just what we all need. At times, it almost feels like you are sitting outside under the trees.
Another response to traditional building methods was the use of a glu lam post and beam structural system. This, of course, is resonant with the way barns were built over 100 years ago. A glu lam wood system is a renewable resource. Other sustainable features include high R value SIPS roof panels, a lighting system that modulates with the daylight intake, heat destratifying fans, overhangs which admit winter light and warmth yet block summer light, etc. The facility is connected to other FCE offices via state of the art AV.
2016 – DESIGN AND APPROVALS
2017 – CONSTRUCTION
2018 – BUILDING OCCUPANCY
WOOLNER – WISE RESIDENCE
Location – Otego, New York Status – Construction started spring 2020 Program- 1,200 SF addition to single family residence
Narrative – The inefficiency of older houses will become apparent the longer you live in them. This design solution for an addition to an older, post and beam, farmhouse, is sculpted so as to bring in tons of south light, open up the house, for the first time, to the incredible valley views, and just provide a streamlined downsize for the owners.
SEPTEMBER 2021 – CONSTRUCTION
FEBRUARY 2020 – DESIGN
MULTIPLE MODEL STUDIES
We enjoy exploring the potentials of any project that we take. And this propensity can be seen when we combine these physical models into one photo. The three photos below demonstrate a theme and variation approach.
LUHMANN RESIDENCE
Location: Cooperstown, NY Status: Completed 2014 Program: 2,400 SF addition and complete renovation to 1500 SF existing residence
The Luhmann Residence illustrates how we have sensitively renovated and added to a Village historical residence. With the historical restrictions in place, the exterior needs to be completely sympathetic and resonant. However, the interior can become very dynamic and open. We believe that this project achieves both goals.
HOTEL AT 124 MAIN STREET – COOPERSTOWN
Location: Cooperstown, NY Status: Not Built Year: 2015 Program: 30,000 SF boutique hotel
This project was not built. But we wanted to include this as we believe it demonstrates the level of dedication that we apply to all of our projects. The introduction of a new, four story structure onto Cooperstown’s historical Main Street is a challenging proposition. A new structure needs to respond to the current visual landscape as well as the historical traditions. It cannot overwhelm. And it needs to be economically viable for the owner. The images below are a sample of the studies that we undertook to demonstrate how we approached this unique design challenge.
WHAT’S COOKING NOW
LOGISTICS
Our office is located in a renovated barn in the heart of the Village. The barn was originally built as a carriage barn.
RECOGNITION AND PUBLICATION
Transparent Drawing, by Kurt Ofer, was released in January of 2021. The book was published by Black Dog Press in London, and is available at all major online book outlets.
The Smithy Art Gallery. Drawings exhibited as part of the Interior Spaces Show. 2016.
New York Transit Museum and The Architectural League. Grand Central Grand Sketchbook. Moleskine, 2012. Drawing Competition Winner. Print.
Editors of Fine Homebuilding. Small Houses. Newtown: The Taunton Press, 2012. Print. Inclusion of Clock House.
Cooperstown Planning Board Historic Preservaion Awards 2010 Bank of Cooperstown
Fine Homebuilding Magazine September 2009 Publication of Stayman Residence -A Striking Hillside Home
Traditional Building Magazine – A Carousel Pavilion Turns Heads October 2007 Publication of Empire State Carousel
Cooperstown Planning Board Historic Preservaion Awards 2006 Christ Church Columbarium, Clara Welch Thanksgiving Home, Bischof Residence
Long Island Magazine – Empire State Carousel August 2006
Nursing Homes Long Term Care Managememt Magazine November 2004 Publication of Clara Welch Thanksgiving Home – Living History
AIA Central New York Outstanding Design Award 2004 Stayman Residence
AIA Central New York Outstanding Design Award 2003 Clock House
Fine Homebuilding Magazine September 2003 Publication of Clock House -Small House Done Right
Marvin Yellow Rose Regional Recognition Award 2003 Middlefield Residence
Drawing from Experience, Publication of Sketches, edited by Paul Laseau, CAP, Ball State University 2001
AIA Central New York Merit Award 2001 Barlet Residence
AIA Central New York Merit Award 2000 Brewery Ommegang
The Daily Star Oneonta- 10 October 2000 – Cooperstown Architects Honored for Work
AIA Central New York Outstanding Design Award 2000 Middlefield Residence
Fine Homebuilding Magazine September 2000 Publication of Middlefield Residence – Archtop in the Valley
Award of Outstanding Achievement 2000 Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana
7th Conference of the European Full Scale Modeling Association (EFA), Florence, Italy 1999 Presentation of Paper Entitled 1:1 Simulation in Architectural Practice See EFA Homepage at < http://info.tuwien.ac.at/efa/efa_99_prog.html> for conference program and paper abstract
Graham Foundation Grant 1984 Full Scale Design Environment Investigation