by Heather Livingston
Contributing Editor

Summary: The Cleveland Institute of Art (CIA) has selected Dutch architecture firm MVRDV to design its new building with the hope of creating an attention-getting icon for both the city and its independent college of art and design. The new building will house classrooms, studios, and public space and will be located immediately west of the college’s existing Joseph McCullough Center for the Visual Arts, a key step toward unifying the Institute’s campus.

“MVRDV matches all of our search criteria for a cutting-edge architecture firm that will help us create an impressive architectural statement while allowing us to function at the highest level,” said David L. Deming, president and chief executive officer of the Cleveland Institute of Art. Deming says that the firm thinks the way the Institute teaches. “They are imaginative problem-solvers who employ a multidisciplinary approach and a strong sense of how good design can improve a community,” he explains.

“Fresh, unusual ideas”
A 22-member architect selection committee chaired by Peter van Dijk recommended the firm to the CIA Board of Directors. The selection committee reviewed the work of 40 architecture firms before narrowing the field to four finalists. “The superb MVRDV team brings fresh, unusual ideas. Their exciting work is spatially inventive and joyful, yet prudent and reasonable to build and operate,” said van Dijk. MVRDV has a strong reputation in Europe and Asia for contemporary, innovative design that complements dense urban settings.

Construction of the new 80,000-square-foot building and renovation of the adjacent McCullough Center will provide students with a state-of-the-art campus in which to explore the Institute’s rigorous and comprehensive curriculum in fine arts, craft, and design. The new School of Arts will anchor the east end of the development near East 117th Street, opposite the Case Western Reserve University Weatherhead School of Management, designed by Frank Gehry. The unified Cleveland Institute of Art campus, together with a building planned by the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland, will be the anchors of a revitalized arts and retail district.