1050 K Street in Washington, D.C., is a speculative office building with an uncommon twist. Developed by The Lenkin Company and The Tower Companies and designed by Hickok Cole Architects, the 146,000-sq.-ft., 11-story building has achieved LEED Gold certification under the USGBC Core and Shell Pilot Program. But what makes its design a true achievement is its integrated art gallery, featuring an exhibition of the work of legendary architectural photographer Ezra Stoller.

Edward Lenkin of The Lenkin Company and Ronald Abramson, chairman of the Washington, D.C., office of Buchanan, Ingersoll & Rooney and a shareholder in the building, are both avid art collectors who saw the opportunity to create a world-class art gallery at 1050 K. “Normally lobbies have a piece of artwork added,” Abramson says. “We wanted to accomplish something more intense.” The long corridor leading from the concierge desk to the elevator lobby and a protected penthouse garden provided the perfect spaces in which to realize the concept, intended to enhance the overall building experience for tenants. Stoller’s work was a natural choice to fulfill the mission in the nation’s capital, says Abramson, because of his status as a preeminent American photographer. The current exhibition, “Man and Machine,” concentrates on Stoller’s industrial photography of manufacturing processes. A second exhibition to follow, “Inhabiting Architecture,” will focus on his iconic architectural images.

Nina Rappaport, publications director for Yale University School of Architecture, assisted with the curation of the collection, and Erica Stoller, who directs both ESTO architectural photography and her father’s archives, provided insight and opened up the archives to bring the collection to life—making this an endeavor beyond the typical corporate art program. “When we started to see the breadth of the archives, we knew that doing a series of eight to 10 photographs wouldn’t be enough,” says Hickok Cole project manager and project architect Jason Wright. “Because of the number of great photographs, the scope grew as the building was into construction.”

Hickok Cole principal Yolanda Cole credits her team with delivering a graceful response to the challenge of creating a gallery space in the middle of a functioning office building, even as the requirements continued to evolve. The designers added fixtures to hang art to the wood wall, then added the striking blue glass wall in juxtaposition to the lobby’s broader materials palette of sycamore wood and Jerusalem stone. Here, the photographs are displayed in a 30-ft.-long case with integrated fiber-optic lighting, while the architectural details of the custom, stainless-steel framing unites thematically with the content of the images. In the end, the exhibit was also carried into the tenant bathrooms on each floor, with entry walls designed to receive framed art. Today, says Abramson, the building is complete with an exhibition handbook, descriptive wall text, and proud concierges who can walk interested visitors through the exhibition.

“We didn’t know how it would grow and how significant it would be,” notes Cole. But in the world of real estate development—where making money is often the driving passion—1050 K Street clearly is significant as an example of how civic-minded developers can add “public good” to their list of sustainability requirements.


who
Client: The Lenkin Company and The Tower Companies. Architect, interior designer: Hickok Cole Architects; Yolanda Cole, AIA, IIDA, LEED AP, principal-in-charge; Chuong T.H. Cao, project designer; Tove Anderson, LEED AP. project manager; Jason Wright, AIA, LEED AP, project manager and project architect; Eric Blodnikar, staff architect. Structural engineer: Tadjer Cohen Edelson. Mechanical engineer: W.E. Bowers. Electrical engineer: Silverberg Electric. General contractor: Fairmont Builders. Lighting designer: Claude R. Engle, Lighting Consultant. Photographer: Ron Blunt and Alan Karchmer.

what
Reception desk, architectural woodworking: Washington Woodworking Company. Reception desk and lounge seating, tables: Knoll. Cabinetmaking: Ted Turner Architectural Metals (Art Display Cases). Planters, accessories: Ruppert Nurseries. Signage: Art Display and Fast Signs. Plumbing fixtures: Kohler.

where
Location: Washington DC. Total floor area: 146,000 gross sq. ft. No. of floors: 11. Average floor size: 13,460 sq. ft. Total staff size: 5.