Miesian Plaza | |
---|---|
General information | |
Status | Completed |
Type | Office |
Architectural style | International Style, Modernist |
Address | 50-58 Lower Baggot Street, Dublin 2 |
Town or city | Dublin |
Country | Ireland |
Completed | 1968-1978 |
Owner | Larry Goodman |
Technical details | |
Floor count | 8 |
Floor area | 20,493 square metres (220,600 sq ft) |
Design and construction | |
Architect(s) | Ronald Tallon (Scott Tallon Walker) |
Main contractor | G&T Crampton |
Miesian Plaza (formerly known as the Bank of Ireland Headquarters) is an office building complex on Lower Baggot Street, Dublin. It is designed in the International Style, inspired by the architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, particularly his Seagram Building. [1] It was designed by the firm Scott Tallon Walker, one of the founders of which, Robin Walker, studied under and taught with Mies van der Rohe, though the building was chiefly designed by partner, Ronnie Tallon. [2] Dublin City Council described it as "one of the most important Modernist buildings in Ireland" [3] and "Dublin’s finest example of the restrained and elegant Miesian style", [4] and its facade and plaza are protected structures. [3]
The complex was built as the Bank of Ireland's headquarters, and it was known by that name for most of its history. Construction was controversial as it entailed the demolition of a block of Georgian homes. [5] The project was said to have used so much bronze, £1.25 million worth of Delta manganese bronze, that the global price of bronze was impacted. The building was completed in 1972 and was the largest bronze-walled building in Europe. Costing a total of £4.6 million, it was the most expensive office development built in Ireland at the time. [6]
The Bank of Ireland sold the property in 2006 at the height of the Celtic Tiger property boom [7] and moved its headquarters from the building in 2010. [8] An extensive redevelopment and expansion was proposed in 2008 but rejected by Dublin City Council due to the impacts on its protected architecture and surrounding area. [9]
The complex was purchased by Larry Goodman in 2012 and extensive renovations were carried out under the original architects Scott Tallon Walker, respecting the complex's iconic design. [10] Following the renovations carried out by John Paul Construction, the complex was renamed Miesian Plaza, [4] and in 2019 became the first development in Ireland to achieve LEED Platinum v4 certification. [11]
Miesian Plaza includes three buildings of four, five, and eight storeys in height, with a central plaza. [12] The two shorter buildings are adjacent to Lower Baggot Street with the 8-story building behind them, minimising its towering effect on the street. [10]
The plaza contains the sculptures Reflections by Michael Bulfin and Red Cardinal by John Burke. [12]
The complex's facade and plaza were listed as protected structures in 2010. [4] The facade is identical to that on Mies van der Rohe's Seagram Building. [13]
The complex was the Bank of Ireland's headquarters from 1972 to 2010. [8]
Miesian Plaza is the headquarters of pharmaceutical company Shire (since 2017 [update] ) [14] and of Ireland's departments of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth and of Health (both since 2018 [update] ). [15]
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe was a German-American architect, academic, and interior designer. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. He is regarded as one of the pioneers of modern architecture.
Eamonn Kevin Roche was an Irish-born American Pritzker Prize-winning architect. He was responsible for the design/master planning for over 200 built projects in both the U.S. and abroad. These projects include eight museums, 38 corporate headquarters, seven research facilities, performing arts centers, theaters, and campus buildings for six universities. In 1967 he created the master plan for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and thereafter designed all of the new wings and installation of many collections including the reopened American and Islamic wings.
The Seagram Building is a skyscraper at 375 Park Avenue, between 52nd and 53rd Streets, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe along with Philip Johnson, Ely Jacques Kahn, and Robert Allan Jacobs, the high-rise tower is 515 feet (157 m) tall with 38 stories. The International Style building, completed in 1958, initially served as the headquarters of the Seagram Company, a Canadian distiller.
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Baggot Street is a street in Dublin, Ireland.
Dame Street is a large thoroughfare in Dublin, Ireland.
Scott Tallon Walker is an architecture practice with its head office in Dublin, Ireland and further offices in London, Galway and Cork. It is one of the largest architecture practices in Ireland. Established in 1931 as Scott and Good, becoming Michael Scott Architect in 1938, and Michael Scott and Partners in 1957 before changing to the current Scott Tallon Walker in 1975. Scott Tallon Walker and its earlier incarnations developed a reputation for modernism.
270 Park Avenue, also known as the JPMorgan Chase Tower and the Union Carbide Building, was a skyscraper in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Built in 1960 for chemical company Union Carbide, it was designed by the architects Gordon Bunshaft and Natalie de Blois of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM). The 52-story, 707 ft (215 m) skyscraper later became the global headquarters for JPMorgan Chase. It was demolished in 2021 to make way for a taller skyscraper at the same address. At the time of its destruction, the Union Carbide Building was the tallest voluntarily demolished building in the world.
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