Building Codes & Other Legal Issues - Architects’ Perspective

William Rawn Associates Architects

The William Rawn Associates Architects firm in Boston was involved in the design of our very own Performing Arts and Humanities Building at UMBC, and the Music Center at Strathmore in Montgomery County, Maryland, as well as many other remarkable projects. This firm specializes in the arts and health & wellness centers and has completed many notable projects for other universities. Their work can be found here

About Cliff Gayley and Erik Tellander

Cliff Gayley and Erik Tellander are architects at the William Rawn Associates Architects firm. Cliff Gayley was the lead architect of the Performing Arts and Humanities Building and the Strathmore Music Center projects.

Cliff Gayley

Erik Tellander

UMBC’s Performing Arts & Humanities Building:

The Performing Arts & Humanities building at UMBC is a state-of-the-art facility for teaching and performing. It includes numerous classrooms, the 275-seat Proscenium Theatre with a flytower and flexible forestage, the 350-seat Linehan Concert Hall, the Black Box Theatre, Dance Studio Theatres, a recital hall, recording studio, rehearsal studios, music technology labs, offices and gathering spaces. This building is essential to the Fine Arts Department at UMBC, where students are able to express their creativity through the arts, and is the most extraordinary building on campus.

The Music Center at Strathmore:

The Music Center at Strathmore located in North Bethesda, Maryland is an artistic and cultural venue. It includes a 2,000 seat concert hall and an educational facility. It serves as a venue for orchestras, artists, and dance groups to perform. As well as musical performances, they also host exhibitions, educational events, festivals, and other gatherings for the community. The Music Center at Strathmore has been renowned as on par with the best new concert halls in the United States (The Washington Post). The building has won many awards including the 2005 AIA Maryland Design Award Honor Award and the 2006 BSA Interior Architecture/Interior Design Award.

Unique Perspective

We asked Erik and Cliff if there is something unique about the way they view other architecture as architects. Erik first shared a hidden talent followed by Cliff’s special insight in how architects take in the place.

The Role of Intellectual Property laws

Erik and Cliff discussed the role that intellectual property plays in their category of work. Architecture dates back historically since the beginning of humanity and architects are aware of the difficulty of creating a unique design based on history. Erik explained the idea that many systems in architecture exist in hundreds of different buildings because it is the only way to do it and is considered industry standard. The outside of a building is typically more creative and thus more important in copyright.

Cliff discussed how in his line of work they are not usually focused on owning certain architectural ideas and prohibiting others from using it.  

We originally thought that architects of extraordinary buildings may be more focused on protecting intellectual property and on infringement given the uniqueness and creative style these buildings typically have. Erik and Cliff explained why intellectual property and infringement are typically not an important focus in their category of work. It is quite difficult to copy a public institutional building due to its large size and complexity. Perhaps other architects could take inspiration from their work, but would not result in a substantial amount of copying and would also result in a different look due to different materials, purposes, clients, land, and the context in which it is built in. Residential buildings; however, would be easier to copy because they are smaller, less complex, and all serve the same purpose.

Ownership

Erik explained to us that there can be a misunderstanding when it comes to ownership of the intellectual property rights of architecture.

Infringement

The William Rawn firm has not had issues regarding infringement, but there are cases of intellectual property infringement in architecture, most commonly in residential architecture. Erik told us about the famous dispute relating to the Sydney Opera House. Another common case of infringement in architecture would be when one architect starts a project, but another finishes it and when architects decide to reuse their same design for another client typically in the high end housing market.

Other Legal Issues

There are many other legal issues that are important for architects, as Cliff and Erik explained.

Code Reviewers for Building Codes

Building codes are one of the biggest priorities for architects. Typical codes include:

  • Fire Code: helps prevent fires and improving safety of those who fight it

  • Accessibility Code: be physically accessible for those with disabilities

  • Energy Code: buildings must efficiently use energy limited by energy codes of their jurisdictions

Erik discussed how their designs meet code. There are code inspectors that the firm consults with consistently to meet codes. They are constantly making changes and providing feedback to architects to ensure that building codes are met.