Diana Center at Barnard College features STARPHIRE ULTRA-CLEAR Glass by PPG

The Diana Center, one of the newest buildings on the campus of Barnard College at Columbia University in New York, features an innovative application of STARPHIRE ULTRA-CLEAR glass by PPG to help it blend with the traditional and historic buildings that surround it, while taking full advantage of the energy efficiency, light transmittance and views the glass provides.

Designed by architecture firm Weiss/Manfredi, the seven-story multiuse arts center features a glass facade and an ascending, double-height atrium that allow natural light to flood the building interior and provide beautiful city views. The curtain wall includes three types of glass panels fabricated and custom-decorated by Goldray Industries.

The STARPHIRE® glass panels feature vertical opaque-to-transparent WALKER TEXTURES® striations acid-etched on the first surface, with terra cotta coloring by Goldray on the second surface. The panels are set in front of a bright-red-painted metal pan, which changes hues throughout the day according to the angles of the sun.

“Producing the right color was integral to this project, creating a unified feeling within the cluster of brick buildings,” said Roxanne Laverty, Goldray marketing coordinator. “Starphire glass is the most popular type of glass we offer because its transparency lacks the green aura of conventional clear glass, enabling decorative glass products like ours to achieve full color fidelity.”

Introduced in 1990 and now in its 25th year of production, Starphire glass remains the clearest, most transparent commercial float glass available today, with visible light transmittance (VLT) of 91 percent in a standard 1/4 inch (6 millimeter) thickness. For more information about the 25th anniversary, or to see other innovative applications of Starphire Ultra-Clear glass, visit www.ppgstarphire.com.