THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, November 17, 1994 TAG: 9411170493
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TERESA ANNAS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 38 lines
Nauticus recently earned one of 12 awards of excellence from the Virginia Society of the American Institute of Architects.
The 120,000-square-foot maritime museum on the downtown Norfolk waterfront, which opened to the public June 1, was selected for numerous reasons.
``It has a good scale with the city and ships,'' said Boston architect Peter Forbes, one of three jurors. ``The seamless quality of the exterior is in sympathy with the ships around it.''
Other judges said the structure suggests ``seagoing vessels without directly imitating them'' and is ``bold, lively and appropriate to its use.''
Nauticus was designed by Centerbrook Architects in Essex, Conn., in association with Shriver & Holland Associates, a Norfolk firm. The attraction emphasizes naval and maritime subjects through films, interactive computer technology, aquariums and other means.
Another South Hampton Roads project also was honored - a proposed hurricane- and flood-protection system for the Virginia Beach Oceanfront. The system, designed by Carlton Abbott and Partners of Williamsburg, would replace the seawall and Boardwalk with an engineered storm protection barrier, while retaining areas for walkers and bicyclists.
Awards were selected from 75 entries and were presented earlier this month at The Jefferson Hotel in Richmond. The black-tie ceremony coincided with a celebration of the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Virginia Society of the American Institute of Architects.
KEYWORDS: NAUTICUS
by CNB