Energizing a new campus district

Phillips Exeter Academy

Recognized by the New Hampshire chapter of the US Green Building Council as its Sustainable Building of the Year, Phillips Exeter’s Thompson Field House is a collegiate-level facility hosting multi-team competition events and a wide range of athletics and wellness programs. The LEED Gold facility features flexible spaces that engage the entire school community and serve as a central part of a campus district transformation.
Presentation Mode
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Field House at Dusk_ PEA

ARC guided us through the complicated process to transform a major campus district with a beautiful new focal point.

Mark Leighton, Director of Facilities Management

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East Elevation_PEA

Balancing old and new contextual design

The state-of-the-art facility’s design delicately integrates a palette of rich materials to gracefully unify a campus district. Natural stone and pre-cast panels complement the campus’ neighboring buildings, all built across disparate eras - including the limestone-clad Thompson Gym (1910), the concrete Love Gym complex (1970), and the more recent masonry of the new Center for Theater and Dance.

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Northeast Main Entry_PEA

Connecting with the campus environment

The facility’s exterior design was carefully coordinated with overall campus planning and landscape elements. The pre-cast panel wall cladding subtly bends from the north-to-south façade, reinforcing the angles of adjacent walkways and creating vistas that reveal connections between buildings, open spaces, and connecting pedestrian paths.

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Aerial View of Field House

The field house is just one part of the overall South Campus Master Plan, developed collaboratively by ARC and Phillips Exeter to transform the entire  south side of the campus. 

  • The field house serves as a central hinge point for the large and revitalized campus district, and includes new vehicular and pedestrian entries.

We are thrilled to have a bright, open, collegiate-level field house that allows our athletic teams and physical education programs to excel all year long.

Mark Leighton, Director of Facilities Management

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East Facade_PEA

Enlightening the wellness community

One of the project’s greatest successes was in brightening a building type typically devoid of sunlight. Translucent systems and minimal openings are employed on the west and south, but large openings are maximized on the north and east - including a bold pattern of vertical windows on the east façade that create powerful visual connections to the landscape beyond.

 

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View from Spectator Seating_PEA
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Indoor Track_PEA
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Pole Vault Area_PEA
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Shot Put Area_ PEA
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HORNER_19106_102_People
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solar panels.jpg

Regenerative design on a large scale 

The large scale of the field house helps maximize the use of regenerative design principles. A 1,500 panel solar rooftop array - one of the largest in the state - offsets approximately 75% of the building’s energy. Large ceiling fans cool without air conditioning, and efficient use of the site’s natural topography allows for campus parking under the building and greatly reduced stormwater runoff.

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solar panels2.jpg

Photography: John Horner Photography; Robert Umenhofer Photography;  Warren Patterson Photography

Project
William Boyce Thompson Field House at Phillips Exeter Academy
Location
Exeter, NH
Size
160,000 SF
Awards
2021 AIA New Hampshire The Excellence in Architectural Design Awards, Merit Award – Commercial
2020 U.S. Green Building Council, CT Chapter, Out of State, Merit Award
2019 U.S. Green Building Council, NH Chapter, Building of the Year
Also featured in APPA magazine
LEED Gold

Energizing a new campus district

Phillips Exeter Academy

Project
William Boyce Thompson Field House at Phillips Exeter Academy
Location
Exeter, NH
Size
160,000 SF
Awards
2021 AIA New Hampshire The Excellence in Architectural Design Awards, Merit Award – Commercial
2020 U.S. Green Building Council, CT Chapter, Out of State, Merit Award
2019 U.S. Green Building Council, NH Chapter, Building of the Year
Also featured in APPA magazine
LEED Gold
Recognized by the New Hampshire chapter of the US Green Building Council as its Sustainable Building of the Year, Phillips Exeter’s Thompson Field House is a collegiate-level facility hosting multi-team competition events and a wide range of athletics and wellness programs. The LEED Gold facility features flexible spaces that engage the entire school community and serve as a central part of a campus district transformation.
Presentation Mode
Image
Field House at Dusk_ PEA

ARC guided us through the complicated process to transform a major campus district with a beautiful new focal point.

Mark Leighton, Director of Facilities Management

Image
East Elevation_PEA

Balancing old and new contextual design

The state-of-the-art facility’s design delicately integrates a palette of rich materials to gracefully unify a campus district. Natural stone and pre-cast panels complement the campus’ neighboring buildings, all built across disparate eras - including the limestone-clad Thompson Gym (1910), the concrete Love Gym complex (1970), and the more recent masonry of the new Center for Theater and Dance.

Image
Northeast Main Entry_PEA

Connecting with the campus environment

The facility’s exterior design was carefully coordinated with overall campus planning and landscape elements. The pre-cast panel wall cladding subtly bends from the north-to-south façade, reinforcing the angles of adjacent walkways and creating vistas that reveal connections between buildings, open spaces, and connecting pedestrian paths.

Image
AR10180121
Image
1491phillipsexeteracademy1
Image
Aerial View of Field House

The field house is just one part of the overall South Campus Master Plan, developed collaboratively by ARC and Phillips Exeter to transform the entire  south side of the campus. 

  • The field house serves as a central hinge point for the large and revitalized campus district, and includes new vehicular and pedestrian entries.

We are thrilled to have a bright, open, collegiate-level field house that allows our athletic teams and physical education programs to excel all year long.

Mark Leighton, Director of Facilities Management

Image
East Facade_PEA

Enlightening the wellness community

One of the project’s greatest successes was in brightening a building type typically devoid of sunlight. Translucent systems and minimal openings are employed on the west and south, but large openings are maximized on the north and east - including a bold pattern of vertical windows on the east façade that create powerful visual connections to the landscape beyond.

 

Image
View from Spectator Seating_PEA
Image
Indoor Track_PEA
Image
Pole Vault Area_PEA
Image
Shot Put Area_ PEA
Image
1491phillipsexeteracademy11
Image
HORNER_19106_102_People
Image
1491phillipsexeteracademy5
Image
solar panels.jpg

Regenerative design on a large scale 

The large scale of the field house helps maximize the use of regenerative design principles. A 1,500 panel solar rooftop array - one of the largest in the state - offsets approximately 75% of the building’s energy. Large ceiling fans cool without air conditioning, and efficient use of the site’s natural topography allows for campus parking under the building and greatly reduced stormwater runoff.

Image
solar panels2.jpg

Photography: John Horner Photography; Robert Umenhofer Photography;  Warren Patterson Photography

Energizing a new campus district / Phillips Exeter Academy
Field House at Dusk_ PEA
View from Spectator Seating_PEA
solar panels2.jpg
Indoor Track_PEA
East Elevation_PEA
Pole Vault Area_PEA
Northeast Main Entry_PEA
Shot Put Area_ PEA
AR10180121
1491phillipsexeteracademy11
1491phillipsexeteracademy1
HORNER_19106_102_People
Aerial View of Field House
1491phillipsexeteracademy5
East Facade_PEA
solar panels.jpg