The Kolumba Art Museum of the Cologne Archdiocese– Peter Zumthor, Cologne, Germany

The Kolumba Art Museum is located in Cologne Germany, and it houses the large art collection of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese (Cilento 2010). Cologne was ravaged by WWII, and this museum sits on the site of a late- Gothic church. Zumthor, like in many of his architectural projects, used fragments and stone ruins from the church that used to stand in its place in the construction of the museum to preserve the historical significance of the area. The entirety of the building is made of a custom grey brick, which makes the museum very contemporary in appearance, but also peaceful.

The museum has 16 exhibition rooms, and a garden courtyard at the center. Because of the grey brick making up most of the infrastructure, it seems pretty plain and simple on the inside, but being a museum, its appropriate because the art should be the main focus. The lighting throughout is more diffused with spotlights on the art pieces, giving the building an overall ethereal and spiritual feeling, which is to be expected due to the art being from the Archdiocese.

Cilento, K. (2010, August 6). Kolumba Museum / Peter Zumthor. Retrieved from https://www.archdaily.com/72192/kolumba-musuem-peter-zumthor

All of the photos are from the above article, taken by Jose Fernando Vasquez in 2007

Willis Tower (renamed in 2009 from Sears tower) is a skyscraper in Chicago, Illinois (History and Facts). It is the tallest building in Chicago, towering at over 1400 feet with 110 stories. On it’s 103rd floor it has an observation deck, making it the highest observation deck in the United States, where there is a clear glass ledge that looks over the edge of the building. On a clear day, the view from the ledge can span across Michigan, Wisconsin, and Indiana.

I visited the Willis Tower while on a choir trip my senior year of high school. The tallest building I had been inside previously was the Empire State Building, but Willis Tower is seven stories taller. Standing on a glass floor with the city of Chicago 1000 feet below you is a surreal experience, and the view is stunning. Standing at the base of the building and looking up made the building seem never ending, and almost impossible how something could be so high. The all-glass look is very modern, and blue skies really reflect off of the side making it seem like it’s a part of the sky. The height of this skyscraper really makes the Chicago skyline unique.  My choir class took a picture at their group photo section because they couldn’t have a whole group stand on the deck, but I’ve included it below anyways.

History and Facts- Willis Tower. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.willistower.com/history-and-facts

Festival Foods is a grocery store that is very near and dear to my heart. Not only was it my local grocery store, less than a mile from my childhood home, but I also worked there for nearly four years of my life. I worked as a customer service representative (CSR), being a cashier and bookkeeper on the front end, and also worked in the deli department for the last half of my time working there. I spent many hours working, shopping, and even hanging out in this building. It was a place for me to not only earn paycheck, but gain real-world experience in customer service, food service, and even learning about the inner workings of businesses. 

The particular Festival that I worked at was one of 6 stores in Minnesota, all owned by sisters Lauri and Marie Aarthun (About Us). The bakery uses products from the local Taste of Scandinavia Bakery, has a wide variety of local fruits and vegetables, and strives to provide local meat and fresh seafood. Some Festival locations also have Dunn Bros coffee shops in them, a local coffee house. The company dates back to the early 1900s, and has gone through a few different names- Applebaum’s, Knowlan’s, and finally, Festival Foods. The store is very rectangular shape with the classic grocery store setup- a department in every corner and the main aisles in the center. The classic slanted roof and green and black color scheme really bring out the 90’s feel of the store.

Although I worked in the front end as a CSR/ bookkeeper for a much longer time, I think that my 8 month working in the deli department were the most impactful. I learned the kitchen like the back of my hand, knowing where every random packaging item was, where all the different food items were stored in the freezer and cooler, and knew what was in all of the cupboards and drawers. 

The people working at Festival Foods were- and are- my family, literally and figuratively. My mom has been with the company for over ten years, my sister currently works there, and I have had a variety of cousins that have come in and out of the store as employees. Many of the other employees have been there for over a decade, and management has been fairly consistent for nearly twenty years. Most of my encounters with this building have been very positive, as I enjoyed working and shopping there very much. We often decorated as the seasons and holidays changed, and the managers worked very hard on beautiful displays that changed with the weekly sale items. Each department worked hard to make sure their displays, counters, and general department look clean, welcoming, and exciting enough to want to try some new food items or explore new recipes.  

About Us. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://festivalfoods.net/about/ 

Carnegie Hall is a concert hall in New York, New York. It was designed by architect William Burnet Tuthill (who was also a cellist), for Andrew Carnegie  in 1891 (A Short History). The hall has featured numerous famous musicians, including Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Billie Holiday, Judy Garland, and The Beatles. It holds over 500 independent events each year, as well as a number of different concert and recitals in all genres of music. There are three halls within Carnegie Hall: The Isaac Stern Auditorium, Judy and Arthur Zankel Hall, and Joan and Sandford I. Weill Recital Hall (Building Overview). The Isaac Stern Auditorium, which is the hall most familiar to me, seats 2,804 people in five different levels. 

I visited New York in March 2016 for a choir trip in high school. We sent about a week in NYC doing shopping, music workshops, as well as getting the chance to perform at Carnegie Hall. Performing in Carnegie Hall is a dream come true for many musicians, and I got to do it with many of my close friends and my high school choir. We were part of the Total Vocal II concert with some other high school choirs across the United States, working with Deke Sharon, who wrote all of the acapella music for the Pitch Perfect movie series.  

It was a surreal experience, to say the least, to not only see the outside of, and walk into Carnegie Hall, but to be standing on stage and singing. The outside of the building appear to be simple in construction- it is very cube-like, with symmetrical, arched windows and doors. Standing on the stage, looking out at the audience at five different levels, and seeing the gorgeous ceiling and open space was an unbelievable experience. I got to experience something that many musicians, and even music-lovers, have always dreamed of, and Carnegie Hall left a lasting impression on me. 

A Short History. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.carnegiehall.org/About/Press/A-Short-History 

Building Overview. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.carnegiehall.org/About/Building-Overview 

Rosedale Center is a mall located between Minneapolis and St. Paul in Minnesota. It opened in 1969, and is positioned along two major highways and two other major roads (About).The mall is 1,149,639 square-feet, and has over 160 retailers, as well as an AMC movie theatre. Rosedale Center is rated as one of the top shopping malls in Minnesota, attracting more than 14 million visitors each year. It is currently undergoing renovations since 2017, renovating the interior, exterior, parking ramps and lots, and the opening of new retailers. The feel of this mall is described as the following: “Glass, steel, wood and stone come together in a dramatic architectural expression to create an inspiring environment, resulting in a first-class shopping and dining experience” (About). The first photo below is before the remodel, taken in 2009, and the next one is after, taken in 2017.

Rosedale Center is a mall that I frequented often with friends and family when I lived in Minnesota. Although Minnesota has the Mall of America, Bloomington was almost an hour drive from where we lived in the suburbs, while Rosedale was a quick 15 minute trip on the freeway. They have remodeled since I used to frequent when I was younger, but the mall still hold the same place in my heart, and the more modern feel it has now doesn’t affect the memories I had there when I was in it. My friends and I would always make sure to meet outside of the Macy’s- it was the closest entrance to the freeway, and we would usually start shopping there. We always started on the second floor, because the best stores were typically on the top floor, which I presume is because you have to drive around the mall to get to lower level parking. We always visited the same stores— sometimes in different orders for different lengths of time, but we always made sure to hit Aeropostale, Forever 21, Claire’s, Lush, and American Eagle. We usually had a back at Auntie Anne’s Pretzels, which was on the second floor, and made our way down to the stores n the first level. The first level has a Caribou Coffee, and we made sure to get a coffee or other drink from there before leaving each visit.

My many encounters with this building were always enjoyable, whether it be just spending time with friends, shopping for prom dresses or going to a specific store with a plan.

About Rosedale Center: Roseville, MN. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.rosedalecenter.com/about