Arts dean unveils plans for new Institute of Contemporary Art

Michael Todd Staff Writer

Yesterday afternoon, listeners had to optimize all available seat, floor, wall and even aisle space in the presentation room of Bowe Street where Joseph Seipel, Dean of the School of the Arts, gave his preview presentation on VCUart’s soon-to-be-built Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA).

A free institute, the ICA will house a spectrum of performing, visual and design arts and more. Besides offering a space for scholarly lectures and classes, the ICA is expected to play home to various interdisciplinary collaborations between artists ranging from citywide to international, as well as collaborations between those in the medical, engineering, social work and other fields.

VCUarts has recruited famous architect Steven Holl as the architect for this monumental project. In 2012, Holl was awarded a Gold Medal, the highest honor, by the American Institute of Architects and has been the hand behind the construction of many innovative buildings created around the world.

The institute will be located at the intersection of Broad and Belvidere streets and will be the first building seen when exiting the expressway. With hundreds of passing cars per day, the location is the most traveled section of Broad Street.

Holl, who was conscious of pedestrian traffic when formulating the design plans, wants the building to look very urban. There will be no walls around the perimeter of the building, which is meant to be accessible to all city residents. One projection screen of the second floor will actually face out toward the public and could display anything from films to photos from the institute.

“One of the things I find really interesting about (Holl’s) work,” Seipel shared of the building and its multiple entrances, “is it looks completely different in the round. There really isn’t a front or back to this building.”

The ICA itself will consist of three floors plus basement space with 37,000 total square feet of interior space. The institute will offer 9,800 square feet of space between four gallery spaces, a café, bookstore, forum area, classrooms and a sculpture garden. Additionally the building will house a 257-seat theater and performance art space, acoustically sound and with sprung floor for dancers.

Of the four galleries, the highest will feature 37 feet, floor to ceiling, of installation space, with a 17 to 18 foot average in the other three. The walls and floors of the gallery spaces, completely plain in comparison to the exterior design of the rest of the building, will be constructed from concrete to allow the easy installation of artwork of all forms. Holl, according to Seipel, refers to the potential building as “an instrument to be played.”

“You really could be in a Chelsea gallery (of New York City),” Seipel said.

While the institute will most likely primary focus on professional contemporary work – mostly themed shows, Seipel said – there will be the opportunity for students to exhibit their work. Much of what is displayed at the ICA is expected to be “edgy” and “challenging” work, perhaps not the kind of thing you’d see in the VMFA. And the Anderson Gallery isn’t going anywhere – this is just one more opportunity for students to display their work.

While all funds for the project are private contributions, and therefore having no effect on VCU tuitions or accepting state funds, Seipel suggested that VCU students show their enthusiasm for the project and its completion by donating towards its construction, be it 50 cents or 500 dollars.

A 32-million-dollar project, VCUarts is still approximately 19 million dollars away from beginning the construction of the building. While there is no official opening date set because of this reason, Seipel expects the doors to open sometime in the fall of 2015. CT until 1980, when he started teaching ballroom dance full time at VCU.

“What I think I like most about (ballroom dance) is that, besides just moving with another person as one, ballroom people, people dancing together, they’re not angry with each other,” Susan Massey said. “They wouldn’t be dancing together. It’s a happy kind of thing to do.”

John Massey has never competed as a ballroom dancer but does encourage his students to aim for competitions.

“I just want them to set their sights high, and then, they may not become competitors, but they will certainly be better dancers,” he said.

Susan and John Massey met through working in the VCU dance department. John Massey taught in the evenings, and Susan Massey taught in the mornings, so they passed by each other every day at the door of the dance offices.

John Massey also pursued Susan to practice a dance with him.

“He kept after me, so I said, ‘all right, I have an hour on Tuesday,’” Susan Massey said. “That hour just flew by. He walked me to my car because he was such a nice man, such a gentleman, and said, ‘Well, it’s too bad you’re so busy,’ and I said, ‘Oh, well I have all day tomorrow.’”

“We just started dancing closer and closer together,” John Massey said.

“And then we were married,” Susan Massey said, completing his sentence. CT