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Minton–Capehart Federal Building

Coordinates: 39°46′29″N 86°9′19″W / 39.77472°N 86.15528°W / 39.77472; -86.15528
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Minton–Capehart Federal Building
Map
General information
StatusCompleted
TypeGovernment offices
Architectural styleBrutalism
Location575 N. Pennsylvania St.
Indianapolis, Indiana
Coordinates39°46′29″N 86°9′19″W / 39.77472°N 86.15528°W / 39.77472; -86.15528
Opening1976
Technical details
Floor count6
Floor area19,200 sq ft (1,780 m2)
Design and construction
Architect(s)Woollen, Molzan and Partners
DeveloperU.S. General Services Administration
References
[1][2][3]

The Minton–Capehart Federal Building is a United States federal building in Indianapolis, Indiana, that is named in honor of former U.S. Senator and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sherman Minton and former U.S. Senator Homer E. Capehart.[3]

The building was designed by Indianapolis architect Evans Woollen III, the principal and founder of Woollen, Molzan and Partners. Completed in 1976, the structure is notable for its exposed concrete slabs, which are typical of the Brutalist architecture style.[4] The some have called the $20 million project a "pigeon coop" and "the ugliest building in Indianapolis."[5]

Built to fill in the east side of the Indiana World War Memorial Plaza, the block-long, six-story structure is raised 24 feet (7.3 m) above grade on large columns. The concrete building includes 290,000 square feet (27,000 m2) of flexible office on five floors and a parking garage level for 500 cars. Its distinctive, horizontal façade tilts outward as the square footage of each upper floor increases.[6]

Graphic designer Milton Glaser, designer of the stylized I Love New York heart logo, designed the building's graphic rainbow mural, Color Fuses, another notable feature of the building. The colorful mural wraps around the exterior's base. Many local residents disliked the colorful mural, which has faded over time, as well as the building's stark design, but architects have considered it one of the city's few "cutting-edge designs from the 1970s."[5]

References

  1. ^ Minton–Capehart Federal Building at Emporis
  2. ^ Minton–Capehart Federal Building at Structurae
  3. ^ a b "Minton–Capehart Federal Building". General Services Administration. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
  4. ^ "Biographical" Sketch in Woollen, Molzan and Partners, Inc. Architectural Records, ca. 1912–2011. Indianapolis: Indiana Historical Society. 2017. See also:Mary Ellen Gadski, "Woollen, Molzan and Partners" in David J. Bodenhamer and Robert G. Barrows, eds. (1994). The Encyclopedia of Indianapolis. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press. p. 1453–54. ISBN 0-253-31222-1. {{cite book}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  5. ^ a b Megan Fernandez (June 2010). "The Pillar: Evans Woollen". Indianapolis Monthly. Indianapolis, Indiana: 72. Retrieved December 18, 2017. See also: Philip J. Trounstine (May 9, 1976). "Evans Woollen: Struggles of a 'Good Architect'". [Indianapolis] Star Magazine. Indianapolis, Indiana: 20.
  6. ^ "Recent Work of Evans Woollen". Architectural Record. 141 (5). New York City: McGraw-Hill: 142–43. May 1967.