Heartwood: Southwest Virginia's Artisan Gateway
Abingdon, Virginia
In 2007 Spectrum Design was selected to design the new Heartwood: Southwest Virginia’s Artisan Gateway to be an avenue through which the area’s diverse artisan talents and identities can be promoted and to entice tourists to explore the surrounding communities.
Heartwood project leaders wanted to combine a fresh design perspective with a vernacular style that is indicative of the region. Spectrum developed a design concept for the building that features segmented gambrel barn shapes fitted together to create an alluring and slightly abstract 28,600 sq. ft facility that still maintains characteristics of classic Southwest Virginia architecture. Visible from the highway, the two-level building will feature a silo-shaped entry constructed from pale green glass block and transparent material. Upon entering the facility, visitors will be able to see through to the opposite side of the building which will look out upon Whitetop Mountain and Mt. Rogers, the highest peak in Virginia’s Appalachian Mountains. The building materials will be low-maintenance but portray a contemporary barn-like feel with stone veneer used for the foundation and pre-finished metal for the siding.
The building’s interior structure will remain exposed featuring polished high-quality materials. On the upper level, five 1,000 sq. ft. gallery spaces will provide local artisans with opportunities to showcase their work and each gallery will feature one wall of continuous glass that not only offers a variety of lighting options but also ha the ability to open up in garage door-like fashion to expand the area and combine interior and exterior displays. Galleries will also be wired with computers that will house electronic portfolios for each artisan, complete with contact information and driving directions to their studios. The center of the facility will feature a performance area under an eight-sided octagonal barn-like structure that can accommodate larger gatherings. A commercial sales space will offer visitors a chance to sample artisans’ work, and a kitchen facility will utilize locally grown products and open into three dining plaza’s, including one on the exterior. The lower level of the building will accommodate approximately 2,000 sq. ft of storage space and administrative offices, a freight elevator and loading dock to allow artisan product as well as food services to be easily transported to and throughout the facility.
On track for LEED certification with the U.S. Green Building Council, the interior of the building will feature low VOC materials contributing to high indoor air quality and a closed loop geothermal well HVAC system to promote high energy efficiency. The open interior and abundance of windows will provide extensive daylighting and views of the outdoors. A green, vegetated roof will be used over a portion of the building and a filtering system will be put into place to collect and recycle rainwater for toilet flushing and irrigation. Located on the campus of Virginia Highlands Community College, the landscape design will include a conservatory of historic and regional agriculture maintained in part by student horticulturists.
