NEWS AROUND CAMPUS
Myles Center for the Arts Renovation Reflects the Creative Process When it comes to the transformation of Myles Center for the Arts and Myles Plaza, Trustee Emerita June Myles likes to tell the story of how it all started with monkeys.
“It is and will be a great space for events for the campus and the community,” Myles said. “When I saw it, I couldn’t get over how big it is. I’m delighted.”
The recently completed $6.7 million renovation, funded through the generosity of Myles, was initially a smaller project intended to create the perfect location for a bronze sculpture of a pair of dancers Myles had commissioned. Her friend and neighbor, James “Jimmy” Grashow, is an artist well know for his cardboard sculptures of monkeys, among other works. When it was discovered that his sculptures could be bronzed, a couple of them took up residence in Myles’ garden in Connecticut.
Demolition of the plaza was important due to its deteriorated condition, Muscara explained, adding that the building lacked a primary entrance and the entry doors were not highly visible.
“I love my monkeys and I love Jimmy’s work. One day I was in his studio and I spotted these dancers – they were 10 feet tall,” Myles explained. “I thought they would be fun out in front of the art center and the plaza was in need of a facelift.” That’s when Myles’ idea began to blossom. From there, she said she can’t explain how the project grew. “It was like when you throw a pebble into a pond and all of a sudden you have all these ever increasingly large concentric circles,” Myles explained. Work commenced with the Mills Group architectural firm to develop a plan and collaborate on a design that would best serve the campus and the greater community, and at the same time manifest a connection to the arts. “The goals for the project grew into creating a showcase for the statue, developing a design for the plaza and building which would be softer and engaging, forming indoor and outdoor gathering spaces which would be connected both physically and visually, and establishing a prominent primary entrance feature for the building from the plaza,” said Mills Group Senior Project Manager Lance Muscara. The result is the addition of the Senate Commons event space equipped with a state-of-the-art audio-visual system that includes five large screens, a media wall and a drop-down projector screen for presentations. The new elevator and balcony bridge make the entire building handicapped accessible at all levels.
“The new site design provides a large amount of planted greenspace to soften the plaza and surrounding area,” Muscara said, adding that the curved slope of the adjacent hillside creates a natural amphitheater. “The entire layout and flow of Myles Plaza comes from music, art and motion,” Myles explained. “Reflection of the creative process was the force behind the design,” Myles said. A work of art as the inspiration for the expansion of a center focused on the arts is quite fitting in the views of students and professors. “Sometimes the role of art gets downplayed,” said Instructor of Digital Media Macy Jackson. “To know that this renovation was inspired by finding a place to display a piece of artwork tells a powerful story.” Jackson teaches courses for the new digital media minor in a remodeled studio equipped with state-of-the-art computers and software, thanks to a gift from friends of the College Doug and Gay Lane.
Members of the Davis & Elkins College community were the first to get a look at Senate Commons in Myles Center for the Arts.
While art classes and studios are located in the lower level of the building, art students have been making use of the entire facility by drawing and documenting art and architecture forms to learn how the two combine for aesthetically pleasing functionality.
Myles Center for the Arts and Myles Plaza were transformed to create a larger indoor space for a variety of activities and an outdoor area that serves as a destination gathering spot. 6
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