Marymount Manhattan College – The Judith Mara Carson Center for Visual Arts [The Judy]

New York, New York

Early Concept Sketch of The Judy – Maximizing Space

The Judith Mara Carson Center for Visual Arts [The Judy] occupies the top two floors of a John Russell Pope-designed building. The Judy provides a new “Great Atelier” in Manhattan to convene the New York art community to participate in multidisciplinary creativity and discourse in daylit studios. The design maximizes space utilization in a dense urban environment. The conversion of static 7th and 8th-floor spaces into a hi-tech Visual Arts Center has elevated this diverse art-making community with new dynamic events, gala, and performance spaces. The Judy features three South Studios separated by flexible, operable glass walls. Above these studios is a new skylight, diffusing and optimizing natural light for drawing, painting, and sculpting. The North Studios feature Printmaking, 3D Wet and Dry, and an Immersive Digital Lab. This Lab enables advanced space and technology options for experimental program needs.

The creative economy is a significant financial engine in cities and communities around the world, yet students seeking degrees and careers in the arts are historically under-resourced. To attract the most promising and diverse student body, the project includes an endowed scholarship fund, which provides scholarships for visual art students. Additionally, the College, general contractor, and project team partnered with the Nontraditional Employment for Women (NEW) Project, a groundbreaking employment model that prepares, trains, and places women in careers in the skilled construction, utility, and maintenance trades.

Construction Manager

Shawmut Design and Construction - New York

Specifications

Architx

Structural Engineer

Simpson Gumpertz & Heger

MEP Engineer + Audio Visual Consultant

Vanderweil Engineers

Lighting and Lighting Controls

HLB Lighting

Inspiration for the Future of 21st-Century Artists

Composition

The Immersive Digital Lab is a piece of experiential architecture, designed to showcase and promote students’ works by fully enveloping the viewer within the art. The 2D and 3D Studios are designed with operable glass walls to separate spaces through intimate learning environments, without the elimination of student work visibility. With easy conversion, the space can use its expansive footprint to foster collaboration and engagement amongst its students. The Skylight runs across the top floor of the center, serving as a connecting element between flexible collaborative spaces. Daylighting allows for the filtration of harsh sunlight to optimize visibility within creative centers.

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Down to the Details

Thoughts of space optimization and programmatic organization foster the growth of Marymount Manhattan College’s arts community, enhancing a space embedded in the dense urban environment filled with creative opportunities.