General Mills Visitor's Lobby Renovation
Golden Valley, MinnesotaBetween 1963 and 1988, the General Mills Lobby was renovated four times with each successive renovation moving further away from the original architectural intent. In 2004 a fifth renovation was completed as part of a master plan including 500,000 SF of expansion and 100,000 SF of renovation intended to accommodate the acquisition of Pillsbury in 2000.
Design requirements for the lobby were to re-align it with both the corporate modern campus and with a company culture that values simplicity and consistency. By removing an existing auditorium, a new commons space is created, bringing natural light from an adjacent courtyard and extending the space for meeting with visitors.
A low-tech blue laminated glass wall guides movement while defining spaces on either side of it. Acid etched stripes on alternate sides of the blue glass wall with slivers of transparency between produce three kinds of translucency. The blue panels and the absence of them provide a backdrop, frame and filter for movement and interaction. The two colors of blue change from contrasting to merging as you move past and are symbolic of the two colors of blue found in the General Mills' and Pillsbury's corporate identities.
related quote - AIA Minnesota Awards Jury
"You can tell it's of 2004," one juror said of the lobby, "even as it respects the older SOM building."