flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Gothic-style dance center breaks ground at University of Southern California

Gothic-style dance center breaks ground at University of Southern California

The Dance Center will be the first new school on the campus in 40 years 


By Pfeiffer Partners Architects  | April 24, 2014
Ground was broken on April 23 for the new Glorya Kaufman International Dance Center on the University of Southern California campus. Named for the donor, philanthropist Glorya Kaufman, the Center will be a home for dance education on the West Coast and the Pacific Rim. The endowment will fund the building and establish a bachelor of fine arts program combining dance instruction with business training and a liberal arts education.
 
Pfeiffer Partners is designing the building for the school, the first new school on the campus in 40 years, beginning with a concept design, a feasibility study and programming. The design team, USC faculty and leadership of the new school are working together to craft a new facility that physically and aesthetically connects to the rest of campus and reflects the University’s master plan goals and aspirations for the new school. The program for the three-story building will include a dance/performance studio, five dance studios, instructional classrooms, performer support spaces, costume storage, and faculty and administrative offices. The project also includes a significant outdoor courtyard in which the campus community can meet, interact and study in an environment that fosters creativity and innovation in teaching and dance. 
 
Prominently located near the Thornton School of Music, on West 34th Street at Watt Way, will function as a key transitional building from the main campus to the future university village being developed across Jefferson Boulevard. The center’s proximity to downtown Los Angeles’ Music Center, where Kaufman has sponsored several dance performances, will strengthen the whole area’s draw as a cultural destination.
 
One primary goal of the design is to achieve a contemporary building that reflects the University’s historic architectural precedents, rooted in Romanesque traditions and Collegiate Gothic style, with authenticity rather than mimicry of the past. Conceptually, the design presents a dynamic, highly contemporary dance facility clothed in tradition. 
 
 
“The building derives its strengths from the principles of traditional Gothic architecture, but is also inspired by Venetian Gothic vernacular. The building’s massing is broken into its components: five major dance studios and a dance performance room, which is expressed in the architecture of the fenestration and hierarchy of forms; large Gothic arched openings introduce generous amounts of natural light into the spaces as well as create monumental openings for major and minor entries into the building. The skin of the building will be Roman brick with large expanses articulated with a diaper pattern. The building’s floor-to-ceiling windows and detailed articulation of precast concrete will extend the richness of the campus’ architectural language to the street for the first time along Jefferson Boulevard,” explains Project Director William Murray, AIA, Principal with Pfeiffer Partners. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Related Stories

| Mar 26, 2014

Zaha Hadid's glimmering 'cultural hub of Seoul' opens with fashion, flair [slideshow]

The new space, the Dongdaemun Design Plaza, is a blend of park and cultural spaces meant for the public to enjoy.

| Mar 25, 2014

Sydney breaks ground on its version of the High Line elevated park [slideshow]

The 500-meter-long park will feature bike paths, study pods, and outdoor workspaces.

Sponsored | | Mar 21, 2014

Kameleon Color paint creates color-changing, iridescent exterior for Exploration Tower at Port Canaveral

Linetec finishes Firestone’s UNA-CLAD panels, achieving a one-of-a-kind, dynamic appearance with the first use of Valspar’s new Kameleon Color

| Mar 20, 2014

Common EIFS failures, and how to prevent them

Poor workmanship, impact damage, building movement, and incompatible or unsound substrate are among the major culprits of EIFS problems. 

| Mar 13, 2014

Do you really 'always turn right'?

The first visitor center we designed was the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center for the Everglades National Park in 1993. I remember it well for a variety of reasons, not the least of which was the ongoing dialogue we had with our retail consultant. He insisted that the gift shop be located on the right as one exited the visitor center because people “always turn right.” 

| Mar 12, 2014

14 new ideas for doors and door hardware

From a high-tech classroom lockdown system to an impact-resistant wide-stile door line, BD+C editors present a collection of door and door hardware innovations. 

| Mar 7, 2014

Chicago's 7 most threatened buildings: Guyon Hotel, Jeffrey Theater make the list

The 2014 edition of Preservation Chicago's annual Chicago's 7 list includes an L station house, public school, theater, manufacturing district, power house, and hotel.

| Mar 5, 2014

5 tile design trends for 2014

Beveled, geometric, and high-tech patterns are among the hot ceramic tile trends, say tile design experts.

| Mar 4, 2014

First look: Historic grain silo to become soaring art gallery

British architect Thomas Heatherwick has proposed to repurpose a grain silo into an art gallery in Cape Town, South Africa. The silo is made up of 42-concrete tubes, which Heatherwick plans to make into gallery spaces.

| Feb 28, 2014

Six finalists selected in design competition for Canadian Holocaust monument

David Adjaye and Daniel Libeskind are among the finalists for the National Holocaust Monument, planned near the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category



Museums

UT Dallas opens Morphosis-designed Crow Museum of Asian Art

In Richardson, Tex., the University of Texas at Dallas has opened a second location for the Crow Museum of Asian Art—the first of multiple buildings that will be part of a 12-acre cultural district. When completed, the arts and performance complex, called the Edith and Peter O’Donnell Jr. Athenaeum, will include two museums, a performance hall and music building, a grand plaza, and a dedicated parking structure on the Richardson campus.


halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021