The Mesa Laboratory / I.M. Pei
The Mesa Laboratory of the National Center for Atmospheric Research by I.M. Pei (1967), in collaboration with landscape architect Dan Kiley. The complex sits on the redundantly-named Table Mesa, at the foot of the Flatirons rock formations in Boulder, Colorado. It's surrounded by a 565-acre nature preserve. Pei was inspired by Puebloan cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde. The structures are built from poured-in-place concrete, mixed with local red Lyons sandstone aggregate to match the rose-pink color of the surrounding hills. A large model of the planned complex is on display. Some of the buildings seen here were never realized. The surfaces were bush-hammered to create that rough texture. I was under the impression that the surface was combed (when wet) like they do when putting in the grooves on concrete highways. However, here is a slightly smaller example of the chisel they used. I love that they had to point that out. I'm guessing one of the scientists working at the f...