Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) unveiled the design for a new Institute for Contemporary Art (ICA) designed by Steven Holl and Chris McVoy.
Part exhibition and performance space, part lab and incubator, the 38,000-sf building will feature a series of flexible programming spaces for the presentation of visual art, theater, music, dance and film by nationally and internationally recognized artists.
The facility also encompasses a 240-plus seat performance space, outdoor plazas, a sculpture garden, classrooms, a café and administrative offices. Scheduled to open in 2015, this non-collecting institution is designed to facilitate the way artists are working today by accommodating the increasing lack of barriers among different media and practices, mirroring the cross-disciplinary approach at VCU’s School of the Arts.
The ICA will feature dual entrances—one facing Richmond and the other fronting VCU’s campus.
At the heart of the building will be an inviting, double-height “forum,” a flexible space for both spontaneous encounters and planned events that connects to the ground-floor performance space and also opens to the sculpture garden and cafe. The galleries radiate out from the forum in forked arms, shaping the space of the garden. Large pivot doors open to the garden in order to create a seamless interplay between interior and exterior spaces. The open circulation serves to remove the formal protocols associated with entering traditional arts facilities. The three levels of galleries are linked through the open forum, allowing artists to create works that extend across, and visitors to circulate through, the spaces via a variety of paths.
The ICA's exterior walls of pre-weathered satin-finish zinc will complement its urban setting. Additional clear and translucent glass walls will create transparency, bringing natural light into the building during the day and radiating light at night, signaling the activities taking place within. BD+C
Related Stories
Office Buildings | Nov 3, 2015
Emotional intelligence and design
In a world in which technology and its skills are constantly changing, good people skills are becoming more important, writes VOA's Angie Lee.
Architects | Nov 2, 2015
NCARB: Interactive tool helps architects prep for exam
The Transition Calculator for the Architect Registration Examination (ARE) will help licensure candidates transition from ARE 4.0 to ARE 5.0.
Architects | Nov 2, 2015
China Accord: Design firms sign pledge to tackle climate change
52 companies will collaborate to reduce carbon emissions.
BIM and Information Technology | Oct 29, 2015
MIT develops ‘river of 3D pixels’ to assemble objects
The Kinetic Blocks can manipulate objects into shapes without human interference.
Architects | Oct 27, 2015
Top 10 tile trends for 2016
Supersized tile and 3D walls are among the trending tile design themes seen at Cersaie, an exhibition of ceramic tile and bathroom furnishings held in Bologna, Italy in October.
Architects | Oct 27, 2015
Architecture at Zero 2015 design competition names award winners
Entrants created family-style student residential plans for the University of California, San Francisco Mission Bay campus. All projects needed to be as close to net-zero as possible.
Architects | Oct 22, 2015
AIA: Architecture firms reporting progress on achieving carbon reduction targets as part of the 2030 Commitment
The AIA 2030 2014 Progress Report highlights an increase in design projects, gross square footage, and net-zero energy projects.
Architects | Oct 21, 2015
Strong rebound for Architecture Billings Index
Business conditions continue to be weak in the Northeast, but the other regions are in good shape.
Museums | Oct 20, 2015
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Bachman Wilson House finds new home at Arkansas museum
Crystal Bridges Museum reconstructed the 61-year-old Usonian house and will open it to the public in November.
Architects | Oct 20, 2015
Four building material innovations from the Chicago Architecture Biennial
From lightweight wooden pallets to the largest lengths of CLT-slabs that can be shipped across North America
