Welcome to the Archives of The Paul Rudolph Institute for Modern Architecture. The purpose of this online collection is to function as a tool for scholars, students, architects, preservationists, journalists and other interested parties. The archive consists of photographs, slides, articles and publications from Rudolph’s lifetime; physical drawings and models; personal photos and memorabilia; and contemporary photographs and articles.

Some of the materials are in the public domain, some are offered under Creative Commons, and some are owned by others, including the Paul Rudolph Estate. Please speak with a representative of The Paul Rudolph Institute for Modern Architecture before using any drawings or photos in the Archives. In all cases, the researcher shall determine how to appropriately publish or otherwise distribute the materials found in this collection, while maintaining appropriate protection of the applicable intellectual property rights.

In his will, Paul Rudolph gave his Architectural Archives (including drawings, plans, renderings, blueprints, models and other materials prepared in connection with his professional practice of architecture) to the Library of Congress Trust Fund following his death in 1997. A Stipulation of Settlement, signed on June 6, 2001 between the Paul Rudolph Estate and the Library of Congress Trust Fund, resulted in the transfer of those items to the Library of Congress among the Architectural Archives, that the Library of Congress determined suitable for its collections. The intellectual property rights of items transferred to the Library of Congress are in the public domain. The usage of the Paul M. Rudolph Archive at the Library of Congress and any intellectual property rights are governed by the Library of Congress Rights and Permissions.

However, the Library of Congress has not received the entirety of the Paul Rudolph architectural works, and therefore ownership and intellectual property rights of any materials that were not selected by the Library of Congress may not be in the public domain and may belong to the Paul Rudolph Estate.

LOCATION
Address: 115 Cedar Street
City: New Rochelle
State: New York
Zip Code: 10801
Nation: United States

STATUS
Type: Residence
Status: Demolished

TECHNICAL DATA
Date(s): 1975
Site Area: 19,706 ft² (1,830.7 m²)
Floor Area: 2,000 ft² (185.8 m²)
Height:
Floors (Above Ground): 3
Building Cost:

PROFESSIONAL TEAM
Client: Gary Strutin (1938-) and Barbara A. Strutin (1943-)
Architect: Paul Rudolph
Associate Architect:
Interior Designer: Clyde (Cloud) Russell Rich, Jr. (1935-1982)
Landscape:
Structural:
MEP:
QS/PM:

SUPPLIERS
Contractor:
Subcontractor(s):

Strutin Residence

The project scope is to design a new loft residence for Gary Strutin (1938-) and Barbara A. Strutin (1943-).
The project location is the top floor of an existing brick 3 storey 17,598 ft² (1,634.9 m²) plastics factory in New Rochelle, New York that was originally constructed in 1940.
Mr. Strutin owns both the building and business below the project site, known as Plastic Works. The company was founded in 1970 by Strutin, a physicist at Bell Laboratories, who fabricated with acrylic as a hobby in Mamaroneck, New York. He turned his hobby into a successful business, established it in New Rochelle and built a strong brand in the New York City area for Lucite® fabrication, acrylic retail and discount sheet plastic sales, and cut-to-size supply to contractors and retail customers. He painted his building pink and purple and its clear visibility from I-95 made it a landmark.
Mr. Strutin wants a living environment that will serve as a retreat from the noise of the noise of the two manufacturing floors below.
Mr. Strutin hires Mr. Rudolph to design the project after having worked with him earlier on several furniture commissions, and whose work he both admired and understood.
After Rudolph presents the design and it is constructed, Mr. Strutin hires Clyde (Cloud) Russell Rich, Jr. (1935-1982) to make some modifications. Rich is a faculty member at the Pratt Institute in New York City and a consultant to the Museum of Modern Art, participating in designing one of the wings. His office is located at 144 East 24th Street in New York City. In most cases, Mr. Rich’s design consists of interior furnishings such as carpets and custom plexiglas furniture designed with Mr. Strutin.
In 1999, Plastic Works moves out of the building to 26 Garden Street.
Don Coqui Restaurant and Lounge opens in the space in July 2009, with its 120-seat dining room taking up much of the second floor of the former industrial space. Cooking classes taught by chefs from Don Coqui and elsewhere are offered on the first floor. According to a March 19, 2010 article in the New York Times, “The loftlike space is warm and sophisticated, with wood floors and exposed rafters and brick walls. White tablecloths and seat covers provide a nice visual contrast. The kitchen, at one end of the floor, has a glass wall facing diners.”
In 2018 the vacant building is sold for near the $3,950,000 asking price by Goldschmidt & Associates to Ward Capital, LLC.

“My objectives were actually quite simple. I saw the space as essentially a retreat from the activity of the other floors; I saw it as a sheltering and all-embracing form, and I wanted it to be coherent and structurally unified.”

— Paul Rudolph