September 2025.
Newman and Wolfrom Lab is odd among campus buildings. It was built as an addition to Evans Lab but was deemed its own separate building; its program was temporary space for a displaced department instead of a new permanent home; and it will soon be demolished for the replacement of Evans Lab, despite being only 30 years old. Additionally, it is the only campus building on main campus named after two different people. (Canfield Hall was named after a family, but they share the same last name.)
Newman and Wolfrom Lab is located on north campus, bordered by 19th Avenue to the north, Stillman Hall to the south, and Fontana and Celeste Labs to the west; it is attached to Evans Lab to the east.
History
Newman and Wolfrom Lab. (Knowlton Archives)
Newman and Wolfrom Lab was designed in 1992 in the Postmodern style. It’s unknown what architect or firm did so, but I speculate it was university architect Jill Morelli. Construction began in January 1994 and concluded in September 1995. At a cost of $14.6 million, the building has a reinforced concrete frame and masonry facade.
Newman and Wolfrom Lab was built as an addition to Evans Lab, and it was meant to serve as a temporary home for the Department of Chemistry as the “sawtooth” portion of McPherson Lab was demolished. The budget was increased to allow for a larger and more efficient building during the design.
Newman and Wolfrom Lab is named after Melvin Newman and Melville Wolfrom, the first two chemistry faculty elected to the National Academy of Science.
Photos
This is gonna be a brief one, because there isn’t too much substance in this design. Here is the south facade, which is the focal point of the building:
Detail of the corner:
The cornice, courses, and quoins are very Postmodern, as they reference history. What’s also odd to me is how the roof is separated from the walls and almost lifts off from them.
The first floor’s bays have seats incorporated into them, which are commonly used by students to study when it’s warm out.
The entrance has a dematerialized portico, an abstraction of a typical Neoclassical/Beaux-Arts trope:
Detail of the “pediment”:
It even has mock denticulation and little rosettes on the corners.
More seating on the west side:
It was almost impossible to get a decent view of the west facade, even at my widest focal length. I tried (and kinda failed) to condense it into one shot:
The west entrance again evokes classical architecture, but in a more geometric manner:
I guess this is the north facade of Newman and Wolfrom Lab, even though it is obscured by Celeste Lab’s walkway:
I think the entirety of the interior is faculty offices, and I couldn’t even find the stairs. I did like this vaulted ceiling in the main corridor, though:
It was rather empty and a little spooky.
Newman and Wolfrom Lab is scheduled for demolition in the long-term, as it will be replaced by the second stage of the Evans Lab replacement project. It seems like an awfully modern building to raze, and it doesn’t look that dated yet, but who knows.
Sources:
https://kb.osu.edu/handle/1811/24059
https://knowltondl.osu.edu/Browse/objects/facet/collection_facet/id/18
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