Irwin Union Bank — iconic and bold simplicity in a town known for its architectural legacy

Columbus, IN
4,000 square feet
2006
Type: Offices
Theme: Asserting Place / Opening to Light

We designed this small drive-through branch for a regional bank with a long history of supporting innovative architecture. Sited on a commercial strip surrounded by big-box stores, we set a glass volume on top of and perpendicular to a brick volume that housed the banking hall below.

The dramatic lighting of the channel glass allowed the building an iconic visibility beyond the limits of its physical size. This same glass volume creates a generously day lit hall for customers inside and dramatic canopy for drive-through customers outside.

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We started with a really simple proposition: How can we make a tiny building in this all-too-familiar kind of suburban landscape ‘quietly stand out,’ while making a tranquil and distinguished place for those inside?

Marc Leff, Senior Principal

Collaborators

Todd Williams & Associates P.C. Architects
Architect of Record

Recognition

Design Award for Architecture
AIANY 2009

Design Award for Commercial Architecture
AIA New York State 2009

Wallpaper
August 2006

Fréttablaðið (Iceland)
October 14, 2006

Architecture Magazine
July, 2006

Dwell
July/August 2006

Atlas of 21st Century Architecture
Phaidon Press, 2011

Interior World Magazine (South Korea)
December 2007

Context & Drawings

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