This is a tourist attraction for those who visit Jerome because it is said to be haunted. I went there with my significant other while visiting her family in Arizona. We took an evening to roam around the halls and all the nooks and crannies of the place to try and find ghosts. It was clear that this place had ties to the western expansion that influenced its style.

Jerome is a mining town and was constructed in 1926 under the name United Verde Hospital. It is on the complete opposite side of the town from the mine in case of a disease outbreak or a mining disaster. This also became the source that the people of Jerome came to believe that the estate was haunted.

Paul Rudolph designed this home in 1969 for the executive of Endo Pharmaceuticals. This home coincides with other Rudolph designs as it has a modern look to it. The aspects of this house were designed from a singular geometric design. The shape of the home is constructed of lumber and resembles the hull of a boat. Even Rudolph was quoted saying that this house is “a wave from the sea”. Most of the home walks away from the view of living spaces being visible from entry. There are small stairways that lead to the library area or dining area. The bedrooms, kitchen, and service are the smaller elements of the house as the living room is expansive and largest room within the house. The bedrooms form one complete side of the house. This gives the house a sectional element as every place within the structure has its designated purpose. With the stunning geometric design, the walls are all coated with the same texture throughout the house. With all aspects of this house on display, there is a subtle symmetry that can be felt and seen. The structural expression represented by Rudolph in this house can only be recognized as class and sophistication.

“Deane Residence.” Paul Rudolph Foundation, paulrudolph.org/project/dean-residence/.

I worked as a DJ tech during a semi-formal for a fraternity one evening and I must admit that it took me by surprise. I did not expect a building such as the BancFirst Tower to have such a luxurious space. I always felt that skyscrapers were full of offices and cubical but now I notice the small differences between them that give them character.

This skyscrapers is 36 floors and was completed in 1971 as the Liberty National Bank. Fun fact about the tower, Dude Perfect, set the world record for the highest basketball shot taken. Dude Perfect is a group of individuals who perform outlandish tasks on YouTube.

This beach guest house designed by Paul Rudolph was evidence of his evolution as an architect. This design came shortly after Rudolph had severed ties with Ralph Twitchell. This newly found freedom gave Rudolph his own mindset. This house is three units wide and three units deep all which are constructed of lumber. Rudolph designed this house with practicality in mind. The frames of the house support a set of pulley systems for the rafters. This allows for the covers to be pulled down for storms and when leaving the house unaccompanied. This also allows for the stayer of the home to kind of customize the feel of the home. lowering and raising the covers can cover up private areas of the house while allowing for common living spaces to feel more open as the structure is not all that big. These covers also got the house the nickname of the “cannonball house” in relation to ships opening up their bays to fire their cannons. In the humidity of Florida, this guest house provides exceptional air flow with openness it creates. This plan of open space coincides with Rudolph’s philosophy of building as the inside of the house is a focus of the exterior.

“Walker Guest House.” Paul Rudolph Foundation, paulrudolph.org/project/walker-guest-house/.

These dual officer towers that reach up 186 meters in the sky were designed by Paul Rudolph. This building boasts 58 different office floor plans between the towers. One tower is 36 floors tall whereas the other is 40 floors. The giant pillars that elevate the building are meant to resemble hydraulic pumps. The overwhelming amount of glass that covers the towers is to evoke koalas climbing up climbing up a tree. this was Rudolph’s idea of giving the building a cultural aspect to its surrounding. Both towers have hexagonal floor plans throughout. This is quite different from the regular square floor plans for most office buildings. These towers go hand in hand with the style of Paul Rudolph. The pillars and Glass curtains that jump out from the building gives this architectural piece a modern look. These buildings are very unique looking in my mind. I personally love the blue plated glass that was used to coat the building. Paul Rudolph was a man with his own style in mind and the Lippo Center was not excluded from his originality. Having such a unique work of architecture gives a company its physical space a personal identity that is unmatched by their competition.

“Lippo Center.” Paul Rudolph Foundation, paulrudolph.org/project/lippo-center/.

This 6,800 square foot beach house designed by Paul Rudolph evokes modernity. When Rudolph designed this home, he wanted the different areas of the house to reflect the different moods and activities that it would hold. This easily seen as the outside of the structure seems to be sectioned off from one another creating different levels. With the large and abundant windows, it is always easy to catch a magnificent view. Rudolph made this even easier by placing the back of the home looking at the ocean with a walkway right down to the beach.

The interior of the Milam Residence is open to say the least. I personally like how Rudolph used focus on the space within the house to organize its look instead of using structural figures. By doing this, it focuses the beauty of the home to be complemented by the outside views. The floors and walls of the interior are extended in very elaborate ways to even more reflect the view from the outside. This home was built with it’s surrounding environment in mind. There is no greater vastness then the oceans and Rudolph recognized this by placing a structurally spacious home right at the water’s doorstep.

Tuohy, Jennifer Pattison. “Milam Residence by Paul Rudolph.” Dwell, 11 June 2019, www.dwell.com/article/milam-residence-paul-rudolph-for-sale-801935f7#:~:text=Designed%20by%20Paul%20Rudolph%2C%20the,be%20yours%20for%20%244.45%20million.&text=Situated%20on%20the%20Atlantic%20coast,with%20its%20location%20in%20mind.

Now, years later, I’m back walking the paths of OU and attending class in its halls. From time to time I will pass the clock tower and be reminded of where I started many years ago. At the same time I am reminded of where I am going. In the time since leaving OU in 2014, I have enlisted into the military, traveled across the country for training and leisure, and deployed around the world. I have found friendship, love, marriage, and new family. I have completed two Associates degrees (one from OCCC and one from the Community College of the Air Force), repaired my OU GPA, and now find myself less than a year from completing the bachelors that I set out to get in 2013. All along this journey, the OU Clock Tower keeps ticking, I think for me it is counting down, down to the moment I and many others walk under it for the first and last time on the way to graduation.

One of my employees visited London last year and showed his pictures of this unique building. It is located in London and is the most distinctive building in London. It was sold to a Brazilian billionaire. It is reported it was sold to Joseph Safra for 700 million dollars. The building has been around for about 16 years. It has a unique shape of an egg and what looks like mirrored, diamond shaped windows. It is a beautiful site on London’s skyline. It used to be occupied by Baltic Exchange, that was bombed by the IRA in 1992, killing 3 people. I love interesting buildings and reading about them. I find it interesting what inspired them on the design. The design was to maximize daylight and natural ventilation. It uses about 50% less energy that a typical building of the same size. It won the Royal Institute of British Architects Stirling Prize in 2004 for its impressive and elegant design.

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-29988282

http://www.londontown.com/LondonInformation/Sights_and_Attractions/Swiss_Re/ae9a/imagesPage/26813

The Perot Museum, located in Dallas, Texas, is a very interesting building because from the front view, which is down one of the major highways in the Park Village area of Dallas, the building seems like it is floating up above you because you can not directly see the entrance. There is also a floating escalator that is cut out of the building, that is completely made of glass and the viewer can see people walking up and down through the museum. The building is constructed of precast concrete panels that have textured fins that fade away as the building gets taller, creating an illusion of the building becoming a part of the sky above. An interesting concept of the building is something that you can not see from the outside, the roof is home to a rainwater collection system that fills a set of cisterns, which equals to about 50,000 gallons of water. The water is heated by solar panels and all of the landscaping is watered through a drip-irrigation system.

This building was one of the first buildings I visited after my first year of studying interior design, so I was able to apply the things I learned to this building and I could truly appreciate how the architect/designer made this building. It is so amazing because I have never personally seen a building like this. Another important factor to me is sustainability and this building check all of those boxes.

As soon as I was out of high school, I landed a weird opportunity to go to a convention and learn about business and different business models.
The convention was out of state and was held at the Lucas Oil Stadium and I just remember that it reminded me of the industrial age in America. I looked at its vastness and was speechless as I walked up the stairs and entered.

The stadium was built to replace the RCA Dome as the Indianapolis Colts Stadium for the NFL. It was built in 2008 by the HKS firm. The thing that I found most interesting was the retractable roof so that athletes can play in inside or outside conditions.