Larry Kirkland & SmithGroup, Inc. RNA Stair Reinforced concrete, stainless steel, glass, mirror 2002 Keck Center of The National Academies 500 Fifth Street NW Atrium (not open to the general public)

The dramatic spiral staircase at the south end of the Atrium (not open to the general public) in the Keck Center of the National Academies functions not only as a means to move between floors but as a dramatic sculptural form in this interior space. The stairway is made of reinforced concrete, which was formed and poured in place at each of the eight levels.

In the early stages of the design development President Bruce Alberts referred to the form as the single spiral of RNA. The added sculptural elements of the two mirrored cones at the top and bottom of the staircase suggest that the RNA continues infinitely. Because this effect is an illusion, it also suggests that scientific investigation is a search for what is true and what is not. One NRC staff member observed that the only RNA that is continuous is a virus and quipped that the staircase should be called the “Viral Staircase.”

Photo courtesy JD Talasek