Program: A four-level, 27,000-square-foot performance hall with an auditorium on the two main floors, office space on a small third floor, a lounge and parking below plaza level, and three additional floors of subterranean parking. The project restores and renovates the 1960s-era Mark Taper Forum, a part of the Music Center of Los Angeles County.
Design concept and solution: Rios Clementi Hale Studios set out to update and expand the Welton Becket building without compromising the original design. To gain space in the lobby—and better spotlight the abalone wall mosaic by Tony Duquette—they reduced the size of the ticket booth and moved the restrooms to a new level downstairs. This new lounge level extends the circular structure's girth below ground, borrowing square footage from the parking garage. Inside, the lounge matches the arc of the original structure and feels like a part of Becket's design. In keeping with the forum's curves, Rios Clementi Hale chose circular motifs for the carpet and the lounge's polished aluminum ceiling.
Architect:
Rios Clementi Hale Studios
639 Larchmont Blvd., Ste. 100
Los Angeles, CA 90004
Tel: 323.785.1800
Fax: 323.785.1842
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Completion Date: June 2009
Total construction cost: $30 million
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