Brad Feinknopf

With floor-to-ceiling glass facades, Milstein Hall was cited for its "emphasis on transparency" by an American Institute of Architects jury.

Milstein Hall has received one of the highest recognitions in the architecture profession – an Institute Honor Award for Architecture from the American Institute of Architects (AIA).

The 47,000-square-foot building, designed by OMA as an addition to the College of Architecture, Art and Planning (AAP), was one of 11 buildings in the United States and Canada to receive the award this year.

The professional organization, based in Washington, D.C., selected 28 recipients for its 2013 awards in three categories (architecture, interior architecture, and regional and urban design) from among 700 submissions. The selection process included a jury review and site visits.

The jury commented that Milstein Hall, with its floor-to-ceiling glass facades, has made AAP “far more visually accessible” on the Cornell campus, and that the building’s “emphasis on transparency places the entire design school on display to the campus in largely successful ways.”

The connection Milstein has created between Sibley and Rand halls, along with the relocation of the Fine Arts Library, “have enhanced communication between student cohorts within the college,” the jury noted. Judges also praised “the exposed systems and relaxed ambience” of the studio space in the building’s cantilevered section, including “the creative clutter created by the students.”

“We’re delighted that Milstein Hall has received this high honor,” said Kent Kleinman, the Gale and Ira Drukier Dean of AAP. “It is gratifying to all who worked so hard on this project to have the effort validated by this national jury.”

Milstein Hall’s previous honors include selection as the 2011 ArchDaily Educational Building of the Year and a 2012 Excellence in Structural Engineering Award.

Other AIA 2013 honor awards recipients include The Barnes Foundation, for a new museum housing the Barnes Collection in Philadelphia; and The New York Public Library, which recently underwent a $50 million exterior restoration.

Sherrie Negrea is a freelance writer.