Photographer James Cavanaugh has captured the essence of Nichols School’s new Student Commons – a design project that was conceived by Flynn Battaglia Architects. The new building conveniently acts as a bridge between two existing buildings, while providing added conveniences for the school community.
“Nichols School’s new Student Commons symbolizes how we continue to innovate and enhance our campus while incorporating and showcasing elements of our history and tradition,” said Head of School Christopher Burner. “Flynn Battaglia Architects, RP Oak Hill, and IRD Corporation did an incredible job of bringing the vision to life. Our students use the expanded meeting space as a new spot on our 30-acre campus to collaborate and learn, and our entire community enjoys the expanded dining area with views of our turf fields. We have already held a number of exciting events in the space, and we all can’t wait to get back to campus to use it once again.”
The intent of the project was to create a multipurpose space that serves to accomplish several goals.
Cavanaugh did an excellent job capturing the flow of the space, that boasts a considerable amount of natural light thanks to the expansive glass atrium. The trick with this project was being sensitive to the esteemed aesthetic of the historic campus, which dates back to the early 1900s. With so many different locational aspects to consider, aside from being positioned between historic Mitchell Hall and the relatively new Flickinger Performing Arts Center, the task at hand was how to sensitively and seamlessly tie everything together.
“The intent of the project was to create a multipurpose space that serves to accomplish several goals including expanding the dining capacity to reduce the number of lunch periods, improving the food service efficiency, creating a student oriented study and gathering space, and creating new front door and pre function space for the adjacent Flickinger Theatre,” said Chris Less, AIA, LEED AP – Design Leader at Flynn Battaglia Architect, historic preservation specialists. “Expanding the original EB Green designed Mitchell Hall took careful balancing of old and new materials using clues from the original architecture to create a light filled, attractive environment for the students. A large glass window and terrace overlooking the soccer fields to the west expands the views to the exterior from the Student Commons.”
Project Team: Peter Flynn: AIA Design Principal, Lauren Kaufmann: Project Manager, William Liberto, ME Engineering, Matt Etu, Tredo Engineers
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Cavanaugh is an architectural and aerial photographer. For the past 44 years he has been creating photographs that tell the story of the places and spaces where he lives, works, and plays. His clients are architects, contractors, engineers, real estate developers, and architectural products manufacturers.
James Cavanaugh – Photography
32 Calvin Court South . Tonawanda, New York 14150
716-228-4960 | www.cavphoto.com | jim@cavphoto.com