Eli & Edythe Broad Art Center
Richard Meier & Partners

Photo © Tim Griffith

The Dickson Art Center, located on the UCLA campus, was originally constructed in 1964. Housing the Departments of Art and Design, the building incorporates additional space allocated to the Center for the Digital Arts and General Classroom use.

During the 1994 Northridge earthquake the building was damaged, requiring structural reinforcement.

Before the University undertook the necessary repairs Richard Meier & Partners and their consultants, working with the University, did a study to evaluate the feasibility and cost of constructing additional improvements or additions to the building, in addition to the seismic upgrades required.

Photo © Tim Griffith

Located at the north end of an important north-south axis, the Eli & Edythe Broad Art Center is designed to become an integral part of a new north gate to campus, linking Parking Structure 3 and campus bus stops with the Franklin Murphy Sculpture Garden, Bunch Hall, Perloff Hall and Dickson Plaza.

Photo © Tim Griffith

The Murphy Sculpture Garden spans five acres on UCLA's north campus and features more than 70 sculptures by artists such as Alexander Calder, Henri Matisse, Henry Moore, Auguste Rodin, David Smith and Francisco Zuñiga. Richard Serra's "T.E.U.C.L.A.,"a 42.5-ton torqued ellipse, was recently installed on the plaza adjacent to the Sculpture Garden.

Photo © Tim Griffith

Photo: arcspace

The existing dead-end courtyard at the north side is replaced by an extension of the campus circulation up a step ramp through the "open" Art School Lobby, then continuing to Charles Young Drive and Parking Structure 3. To complete the transformation of this important public space, a new coffee bar and lobby opens out to outdoor seating.

Photo © Tim Griffith

Photo © Tim Griffith

Photo: arcspace

Richard Meier & Partners has consistently designed sustainable buildings that incorporate daylight and natural ventilation. The Broad Art Center extends that commitment to sustainable architecture by reusing the existing art school's eight stories of concrete structure, saving the cost and energy of demolition and reconstruction.  

By adding outboard structural buttresses to the west end of the tower, the existing structural frame is upgraded to meet current seismic codes. This innovative alternative to interior shear walls lets in natural light and allows for flexible interior space unencumbered by structural partitions.

Photo © Tim Griffith

Outdoor corridors cantilevered off the southern building elevation offer access to program areas and views to and from the exterior corridors. Sun control is provided by a scrim of horizontal blades and roofs that filters sunlight.

Photo © Tim Griffith

Photo © Tim Griffith

New informal meeting spaces for small groups of faculty and students have been added at each floor level adjacent to the elevator core. A new Performance Art space, with acoustic and lighting design capable of supporting a multitude of uses, was created by excavating the existing courtyard. The exterior finishes are concrete, stainless steel, clear and translucent glass, and teak wood.

Drawing courtesy Richard Meier & Partners Architects LLP
UCLA Site Plan

Drawing courtesy Richard Meier & Partners Architects LLP
Site Plan

Drawing courtesy Richard Meier & Partners Architects LLP
Plan

Drawing courtesy Richard Meier & Partners Architects LLP
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