Corey Boucher Portfolio 2015

Corey Boucher
Design Portfolio

TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHICAGO LYRIC OPERA
ARMITAGE PAVILION
FIRST TEXANS MUSEUM
MASSACHUSETTS ST. BUSINESSES
RESUME
4
12
20
26
37

Chicago Lyric Opera
Chicago, IL
Fall 2014

Urban areas provide for unique yet challenging sites. The site for the Chicago Lyric Opera, situated at the
junction of the north and east Chicago River sections known as Wolf Point, provided irregular boundaries
and strict regulations, but yielded a high reward for a well-thought out design, offering up a
breathtaking panorama of the city that rested within walking distance of some of the most popular
attractions.
The main focus of this project was to create an epicenter for the city from which everything radiates and
also falls back to for a surreal experience in an intimate environment. This notion affected the opera
house in plan, with the program surrounding the stage, which is the literal center point of the facility, but
also the metaphorical center point for the cultural arts scene in the area.

NORTH ELEVATION
EAST ELEVATION

SOUTH ELEVATION
WEST ELEVATION

SECTION 1

SECTION 2

Armitage Dining Pavilion
Lawrence, KS
Spring 2014

The KU Field Station is a facility that allows
both staff and guests the chance to observe
nature and wildlife in a microcosm of the
climate of the midwestern plains. At the
center of the survey is the Armitage Center,
the headquarters of the facility. The
Armitage Center is the intake point for all
guests, and often hosts groups for
celebratory or educational purposes. The
Field Station reached out to the Dirt Works
Studio, with which they had commissioned
two prior projects, the Roth Trailhead (above
left), and the Field Station Gateway (above
right), to design a dining pavilion for the
Armitage Center. This pavilion would serve
as a gathering place for both the staff on a
regular basis as well as special groups
visiting the center on occasion.
The intent of the design was to create a
multipurpose space for users which would
provide shade from the hot Kansas sun, and
preserve the views out to the beautiful
natural surroundings that encompass the
center, specifically the prairie grass
immediately to the center's west. And
keeping with the central purpose of the Dirt
Works Studio, the pavilion would be
constructed primarily of rammed earth.

CANOPY
WALL
FOUNDATION

WEST ELEVATION

First Texans Museum
Dallas, TX
Fall 2013

Lying in the middle of the Dallas Arts District, the First Texans Museum takes the spot of a
parking (#6 above) to preserve the history of the Native Americans who inhabited the area
that would later become Texas. The unique challenge presented here is the presence of
dozens of buildings in the nearby area that already command a lot of attention, having
been designed by multiple Pritzker prize-winning architects.
The museum takes its form from the most traditional weapon the Native American's had -
the bow and arrow - and the longhouses that some tribes often inhabited. The common
history of the Native American tribes is preserved in the open galleries in the north of the
muesum, but a central tower encloses the Galleries of Contact and Effect, which chronicle
the tragic and often covered history of Native American tribes and their oppression by
European settlers.

SECTION 1

SECTION 2

Massachusetts St. Businesses
Lawrence, KS
Spring 2013

This project aimed to reenvision two vacant spots on Massachusetts Street, the main
arterial avenue of downtown Lawrence, Kansas. The northernmost site, a 50-by-100 foot
lot would become an optometrist's office, and the southernmost site a community theatre
for Lawrence. Though the sites were not adjacent, the ability to create a cohesive site
between the two was critical in activating the block, which is at the southernmost periphery
of Massachusetts Street's most active section.
Creating connections to the street, which is highly pedestrian, was the central focus. The
traditional facade of the optometrist's office was turned to create another alleyway, which
are prevalent along the street. The community theatre features a courtyard with visual
connection to the street, blending the site together.
But the other theme of the two was the dynamic between living and working, as the optometry office
housed an apartment for the doctor and her family, and the theatre housed apartments for visiting artists
and actors. Carefully designing this balance was at the heart of the projects' success.