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_Wired 1.3_
WorkSpace for the Global Village
********************************

-- Photos by Paul Warchol

-- Story By Julie Meidinger
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

When David Shaw approached New York architect Steven Holl to design his 
offices on the top two floors of a Times Square building, he hoped to 
create an environment that represented the spirit of his high-technology 
trading firm. Shaw, who holds a PhD in computer science from Stanford, 
started D.E. Shaw & Co. in 1988. The firm uses sophisticated 
mathematical models running on Sun workstations to make high-volume 
trades in global markets. According to The Wall Street Journal, the firm 
represents the future of stock trading, a future in which traders are as 
likely to be trained in computer science as high finance.

As Holl describes it, Shaw's activities take place in an "ultra-modern 
space of [information] flows," rather than in the physical space of New 
York. D.E. Shaw & Co. could be anywhere, as long as it was connected to 
the global trading network.  Holl's question, then, was "how do you 
represent that in a way that is both visual and spatial?" 

When the project was first conceived, both architect and client had the 
idea of some machine-like intrusion in the space, but Holl realized that 
Shaw's business was not about machinery, it was about information. Then, 
Holl noticed a red splotch on the stairway wall of his apartment. The 
spot, it turned out, was the reflection from a red car on the street - a 
informational reflection of a material object, in this case, a red car. 
To duplicate that effect, the architect bought sheets of fluorescent 
foamcore and tried bouncing color off his studio walls on a sunny 
Saturday morning. 

The effects of the reflections were luminous. Holl conceived a simple 
strategy of suspending gypsum board walls on metal framing and cutting 
out slots to allow hidden, reflected colors to illuminate the room. All 
visible surfaces were painted white, while unseen surfaces were painted 
day-glo colors that reflected fluorescent lights at night, and sunlight 
during the day. 

Shaw's office marked Holl's first application of this aesthetic - the 
technique is used to greatest effect in the company's soaring two-story 
lobby. A wall blocks a view of Manhattan while allowing natural light to 
seep in around its edges and through cut-out slots. Other walls block 
the office itself, but provide glimpses of the activities beyond. From 
behind another wall, a blue glow, seemingly from a flickering CRT, can 
be seen. 

Beyond the lobby, the individual offices are simple, with custom 
furniture and lighting that reflect Holl's minimalist approach. Even the 
maze-like back corridors are punctuated with niches illuminated by 
reflected neon light. Hidden from view is what Holl's partner and 
project architect Tom Jenkinson describes as an "intimidating amount of 
space" set aside for computer wiring and battery backup. Ironically, 
this is even more critical than some of the workspace - if the power 
goes out, even for a moment, millions of dollars can be lost. 



----------------------------------
Julie Meidinger is a New York-based architecture critic.

Steven Holl Designs a 24-hour Digital Office for D.E. Shaw & Co's Global 
Securities Company.



(c) 1993 Wired magazine


