NCSU | Goodnight Raleigh

Apple’s “Spaceship” Campus Proposal Looks Familiar

Top: Rendering of Apple's new headquarters in Cupertino, CA. Bottom: Model of Columbus Circle Shopping Center in NYC by former NCSU architecture professor Matthew Nowicki. Bottom image courtesy of and copyright NCSU SCRC.

The announcement of Apple’s new campus in Cupertino, California created a bit of buzz amongst the company’s fans as well as architecture enthusiasts. The design has been likened by many to a spaceship. It will feature several technological innovations as well as provide its own power from an on-site natural gas plant.

While many were focusing on how new and different this building is, I couldn’t help but think how similar it is to the Columbus Circle Shopping Center Proposal (unbuilt), drawn up more than 60 years ago by the former head of NCSU’s architecture program, Matthew Nowicki.

Roy Gussow, designer of “The Egg” at the NCSU College of Design, dies at 92

by Yes! sputnik
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1970 Sidewalk Art Show : From the North Carolina State University Library Archives

The College of Design at North Carolina State University is known for its venerable history. However, few relics are as significant and have played such a catalyzing social role as Roy Gussow’s ellipsoidal sculpture.

Designed in 1961 during Gussow’s stint as a professor at the college, the sculpture has affectionately been called “The Egg” by countless design students for half a century. Nested in the courtyard between Kamphoefner and Brooks Hall, its gleaming mirrored exterior and unique shape are impossible to miss.

NC State: Please Don’t Destroy the Bookstore!

by John Morris
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In advance of Talley Student Center renovations at NC State, a plan is underway to move the Bookstore to the ground level of Harrelson Hall. It is expected that by the middle part of this year, the current Bookstore (above) will be torn down.

If demolished, it will be one of the most significant architectural losses the city of Raleigh has experienced in many years.

Southern Roots of Mid-Century Modern at the Gregg Museum

by John Morris
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For the next three months, the Gregg Museum on NC State’s campus will host the Southern Roots of Mid-Century Modern exhibit. Featuring examples of modern design in furniture, art, architecture, and clothing, visiting the exhibit is a bit like stepping back in time a few decades.

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