Southern Oregon University, Ashland
27,000 sf
Completed in 2000

The Center for the Visual Arts at Southern Oregon University in Ashland is a three-building complex organized around an outdoor plaza. The buildings include a renovation and addition to the existing 1950-s-era Commons Building to accommodate studio facilities for painting, drawing, photography, printmaking, fiber design and computer graphics; a new 27,000 sf Arts Building to accommodate ceramic studios, a large lecture room, classrooms, seminar rooms and offices; and an addition to the Schneider Museum of Art.

The plaza is an outdoor "living room" for the University arts community, bringing all the related functions together. The space of the plaza is subdivided into a set of smaller components with varying geometries and level changes, giving each of the three buildings its own outdoor terrace for day-to-day use. At the same time, it is clearly a singular space symbolizing the presence of the arts on the campus.