Antinozzi Associates

Owner:

Town of Oxford

General Contractor:

O & G Industries

Scope Of Work

This high school project was the culmination of sev­eral years worth of intensive community involvement, led by Antinozzi Associates to expand and enhance the public school system in the Town of Oxford. Oxford High School was designed to house 750 students (with expansion to 800 students), and revolved extensively around the need to use portions of the facility for community purposes. The budget also included a natatorium and core facilities for future expansion.

The Oxford High School design shows the influence of the Amsterdam School after a design study trip to the Museum Het Schip in 2005. The design concept revolved around the idea of expressing the interior spaces to the exterior by the use of different bricks and corrugated metal panels, three-dimensionally off­setting masses and wall skins. Differentiating colors and textures announce the function of the walls and volumes within the interior spaces.

The school building is located on a site that takes ad­vantage of distant vistas extending across Long Island Sound. The library occupies the upper level of the ro­tunda above the main entrance at the building’s center. Its prominent location and transparency serve as a cul­tural beacon representing the school’s high academic standards. The auditorium and main gymnasium flank the rotunda lobby, making this a civic destination as well as an educational facility.

When Livingston Taylor performed in the auditorium in 2008, he commented to the audience on what won­derful spaces the new auditorium and media center were, referring to the woodwork and architecture. The air was running and it was absolutely quiet. He said, “What is so special, is that this hall is so quiet. Whoever did this, did it right!”.