Swiss architecture studio Karamuk Kuo has completed a striking contemporary extension to the Rice School of Architecture in Texas, featuring an innovative design composed of "linear forms that slip and slide" with facades wrapped in glass and terracotta. The new building, named the William T. Cannady Hall for Architecture, represents the Zurich-based firm's first project in America and marks a significant addition to the Rice University campus in Houston.
The project is strategically located along the university's historic quadrangle, which is traditionally ringed by brick buildings. The extension was designed as a major addition to the existing MD Anderson Hall, a building originally constructed in 1947 by Staub & Rather and later updated in the 1980s by renowned British architects James Stirling and Michael Willford. The latest renovation called for a new building specifically designed to foster "architectural production, research, and exhibition."
Karamuk Kuo, led by architects Jeannette Kuo and Ünal Karamuk, conceived a two-story addition that successfully balances highly contemporary design elements with respect for the historic campus context. Encompassing 22,000 square feet (2,044 square meters), the new building features an irregular, jagged floor plan that was specifically designed to step around a mature live oak tree and other important site elements. This thoughtful approach demonstrates the architects' commitment to preserving the natural landscape while creating functional new spaces.
The building's unique structural design includes a portion that sits directly over an existing arcade, supported by sleek metal pilotis. The remainder of the freestanding extension features a dramatically cantilevered upper level, also supported by steel beams, with an external stairway that provides access to a central courtyard. According to the design team, "One of the design challenges was integrating Cannady Hall into Rice's landscape of long, narrow brick buildings while preserving an iconic live oak tree on site. Karamuk Kuo embraced this challenge by breaking down the building into linear forms that slip and slide, creating a dynamic relationship between indoors and outdoors."
The building is crowned with a distinctive sawtooth roof that "echoes the industrial vocabulary of fabrication spaces," creating both functional and aesthetic benefits. The facade treatment varies by level, with metal panels and vast stretches of glass dominating the ground floor to maximize natural light and visual connectivity. The upper portion of the building is clad in terracotta battens, a material choice that the studio describes as "both contemporary and historically resonant, respecting Rice University's material legacy while advancing sustainable architecture."
Inside, the building contains airy, light-filled spaces designed to inspire creativity and collaboration. Double-height voids and interior glazed walls enable clear sight lines between the upper and lower levels, promoting interaction and visual connectivity throughout the facility. The architects deliberately left the steel framework and building systems exposed, allowing students to observe and learn from the inner workings of the building's construction and mechanical systems.
The ground level houses practical spaces including a fabrication shop, gallery and pinup spaces, and various support areas essential for architectural education. The upper floor contains open work areas, a model shop, and additional exhibition space for displaying student and faculty work. The exposed steel framework serves both educational and sustainable purposes, as the team explains: "Its bolted steel frame allows for disassembly and reuse, contributing to its forward-thinking, sustainable ethos."
The comprehensive renovation project also included updates to the adjacent Anderson Hall, overseen by Chicago studio Kwong Von Glinow. This parallel renovation created several new spaces within the existing building, including a welcoming entrance center, a comfortable faculty and staff lounge, and an innovative forum featuring circular wooden seating arrangements that encourage collaboration and discussion.
The William T. Cannady Hall for Architecture joins a growing collection of notable architecture school buildings across America, including a Nebraska facility by NADAAA and HDR featuring mass timber and translucent panels, and a University of Michigan building by Preston Scott Cohen that incorporates a sawtooth roof and ironspot-brick cladding. The project's photography was captured by renowned architectural photographer Iwan Baan, showcasing the building's integration with both the historic campus context and the surrounding landscape.
