Oct 26, 2009
Vukovich Center at Allegheny College | Polshek Partnership Architects
Photo©Jeff Goldberg/ESTO for Polshek Partnership Architects
Polshek Partnership’s new $23 million, 40,000-square-foot Vukovich Center at Allegheny College provides a state-of-the-art theater and communication arts teaching facility
The new Vukovich Center promotes the communication arts to Allegheny College and the greater Meadville community and creates a dynamic new center of student activity on campus.
Located on the northern edge of an existing green that was defined by the Museum on the south and Henderson Hall student activities building on the east, the building completes the quadrangle and defines it as an arts precinct. This site strategy takes advantage of well-travelled paths to encourage pedestrian circulation around and through the building, exposing the campus community to the theater arts. The building is conceived as a teaching theater, and its organization reinforces the preeminence of the creative process: traditional distinctions between “front of house” and “back of house” activities are minimized to illuminate the process of theater production, and the design fosters informal interaction and creative collaboration among faculty, students and staff.
Photo©Jeff Goldberg/ESTO for Polshek Partnership Architects
The building’s scale and materiality respond to that of the older buildings on campus without sacrificing the identity of this progressive communication arts program. Exterior materials – zinc, glass and red and dark gray iron-spot brick – accentuate the simple volumes of the building. Interior building materials and the theater’s technical equipment, which is celebrated rather than concealed, express a “refined black-box” aesthetic and an appreciation for the craft of theater production.
Photo©Jeff Goldberg/ESTO for Polshek Partnership Architects
The new 40,000 square foot facility, which is dedicated to teaching theater, television and related communication arts, includes rehearsal and instructional spaces, technologically-advanced video production facilities, a 250-seat theater for hosting performances and public events, related support spaces including scene and costume shops and dressing rooms, and faculty office spaces.
The new technologically-advanced facilities have enhanced collaboration among disciplines, enabled innovative new teaching methods, and allowed the department to enrich its programs in the communications arts.
Followings Photo©Aislinn Weidele/Polshek Partnership
Design Team
Design: Brian Masuda, Todd Schliemann
Management: Molly McGowan, Timothy Hartung,
Project Team: Chris Andreacola, Allison Reeves, Charmian Place, Madeline Sun, Charles Brainerd, Matt Dionne, Amber Foo, Youngsun Ko, Ken Mito, Maura Rogers, James Sinks, Akari Takabayashi, Todd Van Varick
ABOUT POLSHEK PARTNERSHIP ARCHITECTS
Known for powerful building designs for cultural, educational, scientific and not-for-profit institutions, Polshek Partnership Architects is a 150-person studio based in New York City. Projects have been published internationally and recognized with numerous awards for design excellence and for their important contributions to the life of their cities and campus precincts. The firm’s research-based design process sponsors the creation of signature building designs that are expressive of an institution’s philosophy and vision and address each project’s unique programmatic, technical, aesthetic and environmental issues. For more information, visit www.polshek.com.
ABOUT ALLEGHENY COLLEGE
Located in Meadville, Pennsylvania, Allegheny College is a 2,100 student liberal arts college committed to academic excellence in an intimate setting. Students are encouraged to explore their talents and interests and to forge unique interdisciplinary combinations, and faculty are committed to undergraduate education. http://www.allegheny.edu
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