| The
Justice Center is designed both to reflect the immediate context of
its rural Kentucky community and to convey a strong message about
the American Judicial System. The building is located within a block
of the traditional Town Square, and its height, relationship to the
street, pedestrian patterns and colors all directly reflect the existing
context. The
gently curving floor plan allows the building to transition from
a rigidly set pattern of existing buildings placed tight against
the street, to a more open feel already established by earlier city
expansion that did not respect the pre-established pattern.
Building forms directly recall
appropriate images of stately rows of columns, flanked on one end
by a form reminiscent of the Jefferson Memorial, and at the other
end, one less directly taken from the Supreme Court Building.
While certainly not intended
to reproduce the historic detailing of such important civic buildings,
the design seeks to recall the feel of these and other similar courts
and civic structures to express the enduring strength of the American
Judicial System.
Contemporary detailing is
balanced by rigid adherence to the proportions governed by the Greek
Corinthian Order, establishing an orderly, well mannered presence
that is comfortable within the existing community context, yet expressive
of the dignity of the Courts Systems itself. |
