A compact figure clad entirely in black—no fashionista, but a man who eschews clothing decisions—and wearing a white hard hat and protective goggles, Rubin points out innovative features of the three-tiered structure terraced into the side of a grassy slope in Northern Virginia's Loudoun County, 30 miles from downtown Washington. Fondly dubbed “the landscape building,” its design, by renowned architect Rafael Viñoly, has made extensive use of glass. The result is a structure that is “massive yet transparent,” despite the fact that it's mostly underground, says Rubin. “We've made a place where you can walk outside on any level of the building, or be indoors yet feel as if you're outside.”

Photo: Elena Dorfman