Jay Heritage Center

Jay Heritage Center – Visitor Center

M.Arch Advanced Studio V
Columbia University, GSAPP
New York
Fall 2020

Section Critic
Mark Rakatansky + Jorge Otero-Pailos

Located in the property of Jay Heritage Center (JHC) at Rye, NY, The proposed structure will be home to three exhibits that explore the legacy of John Jay, the New York Manumission Society, and New York African Free School in the early 19th century. The project aims to re-establish JHC’s historical narrative through the critical reconstruction of John Jay’s contradictory legacy to address pressing issues of social injustice in the present and future.

Rethinking Colonial Style

This project architecturally examines and reconstruct the language of early colonial architecture and transforms it into a new language that is still rooted in the past.

Following cues from the Carriage House, the building’s massing began with projections of the pitched roof joint by an envelope. The site and features of the Carriage House (i.e., clock tower, dormer, low sill windows) show traces of the labor and social hierarchy involved in maintaining the estate.

The building’s materiality further projects the language of the Carriage House by using a standing seam copper roof as the envelope, tall brick walls for partition, and glass slats curtain wall system.

Prelude to Freedom

Upon entry, the hall features an exhibit that guides the visitor through the history of the Revolutionary War in New York during the late 18th century. The story began with the Great Fire of New York in 1776. During this period enslaved African Americans were recruited by the British to fight against revolutionaries with a promise of freedom. It was under this climate, that John Jay founded the New York Manumission Society with an aim to gradually emancipate slavery and to build leadership in the freed African American community.

The hall is defined by a reversed dormer space and a partial pitched roof creating an intimate environment within the large double story space.

New York Manumission Society

The second part of the exhibit touches on the debatable intentions of the NYMS. Meeting minutes from 1785, which talks about fostering “good moral characters,” indicates that the NYMS held a certain prejudice and moral high ground on the freed African Americans. This perspective is further manifested by The Five Points, a painting derogatorily depicts the urban life of African American in Manhattan.

From Laborer to Leader

However controversial, NYMS established the New York African Free School, which fostered a roster of abolitionist leaders. The exhibit tells the story of notable alumni across fields of arts, science, business, and politics.

The exhibit features notable students like Ira Aldridge (an only actor with African heritage honored by Shakespear Memorial Theater ), Dr. James Smith (a pioneer in medicine), George Downing (a notable restauranteur), and Henry Highland Garnet (A minister who delivered the sermon during the passage of 13th amendment).