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Published Wednesday, February 1, 2006 Rainbow Rowell: Omaha architect's building gains world acclaim BY RAINBOW ROWELL If you're on a contemporary architecture road trip across the United States . . . There's only one building between Iowa City and Denver that's worth stopping to see. According to the Phaidon Atlas of Contemporary World Architecture, that building is the 120BLOndo Building, the offices of Omaha architect Randy Brown. Can you picture it? A smallish, grayish office building on the southeast corner of 120th and Blondo Streets? Looks like a rhombus picking a fight with a trapezoid? The building -- its actual address is 1925 N. 120th St. -- caused a bit of a stir when it went up (and out and around and in on itself) eight years ago. It became that weird building. That goofy building. And, occasionally, that ugly building. What 120 Blondo is, everyone agrees, is different. An eruption of modern architecture in the middle of Stripmallsville. "This building was a polemic," says Brown, assuming I know exactly what polemic means. (An aggressive attack on or refutation of the opinions or principles of another.) "It was to get people to look at office buildings and ask why do all of them have a band of brick, a band of glass and a band of brick, surrounded by asphalt? "Why are all the suburban buildings so ugly? So banal?" The building - -which also houses his father's law firm, his family's development company and American Express Financial Advisors -- brought Brown fans all over the world. It won numerous awards and was featured in many architecture magazines. "For some reason, the Germans and Italians really like it." Still, Brown was blown away when he heard 120 Blondo would be featured in the Phaidon Atlas. Phaidon is an art, architecture and design publisher. A jury of 150 architecture experts from all over the world selected more than 1,000 buildings to be featured in the guide. All the buildings are literally modern, completed since 1998. Other buildings that made the cut are the Experience Music Project in Seattle and the Tate Modern Museum in London. Brown, 39, is featured between two of his heroes, Antoine Predock and Steven Holl. "I didn't really know until we saw the book what an honor it was," he said, to be included. The Phaidon Atlas has two editions: a hardcover that weighs almost 20 pounds and will set you back about $160, and a softcover travel edition. The latter has fewer photos and information, but it weighs less than a pound, costs $19.95 and will fit in your pocket. (If you have largish pockets.) 120 Blondo is on page 379 of that edition. That's the edition to take on your architecture road trip. * * * What's Randy Brown's latest polemic? Suburban malls and housing. Brown formed a development company, Quantum Quality Real Estate, with members of his family. Quantum was one of the developers of Village Pointe, and Brown's firm designed two buildings there. Now Brown is working on a small housing development near Standing Bear Lake called Hidden Creek. The goal at Hidden Creek is to be kind to the environment and to take advantage of its natural beauty. Brown is designing 12 eco-friendly homes, integrating them into the existing landscape. Think sustainable materials, energy conservation, grass roofs (yes, grass), solar panels and wide open interiors. The exterior design ranges from traditional West O to sleek and modern. The first three Hidden Creek homes -- named Elm, Cottonwood and Crabapple after existing trees in their yards -- will be ready to move into this summer. As soon as I get $350,000, I'm moving in.
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