Arts Plaza Design
A Design for Our Community
UC Irvine's Claire Trevor School of the Arts brings a unique, outdoor venue to the Orange County community. Designed by artist Maya Lin, the Arts Plaza is a showcase for the visual and performing arts. At once an outdoor gallery, performance space, learning space, and park, the Arts Plaza opens the colorful world of the arts to visitors of all ages. It adds a cultural resource to Southern California unlike any other.
At the heart of UCI's Claire Trevor School of the Arts, fronting its major theaters and exhibition spaces, is the 30,000-square-foot Arts Plaza. Visitors can explore the School's vast offerings in the visual and performing arts including:
- Live performances in music, theater, and dance
- Art exhibitions, video, and film screenings
- Instructional activities, guest artists, and lectures on the arts.
The Arts Plaza design by Maya Lin includes technological components that make this space unique in America and perhaps the world. In addition to live performances and on-site exhibitions, the Arts Plaza uses wireless and internet technology to offer the arts from around the globe. An artist anywhere in the world is able to submit art, music, video or film for display in the Arts Plaza.
I've been interested in a university project that presents significant design challenges and opportunities like those present at UCI. The plaza will be a multifunctional space where students, faculty, and visitors can gather for learning or for quiet contemplation. It truly will serve as the heart of the School, and must capture the School's creative energy and vibrant spirit.
—Maya Lin
Maya Lin, Artist
As an architecture major at Yale University, she won the competition to design the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. and captivated a nation. Lin has created nationally recognized works that have touched people in a way unprecedented in contemporary art and architecture. She is widely recognized as one of America's great artists.
Pamela Burton, Landscape Architect
Pamela Burton is lauded for her interdisciplinary approach to design that integrates the disciplines of art, architecture, and landscape. Geography, ecology, and history all play a role in her designs for public and private spaces throughout Southern California.
The Design: Creating a Welcoming Gateway to the Arts
The arts entertain, move us, challenge and teach us. The Arts Plaza is a focal point for the Claire Trevor School of the Arts campus and a major addition to Southern California's rich and diverse cultural life. Winding pathways connect the different elements of the Plaza, which are landscaped to encourage visitors to stay and experience the arts. Key components of the Arts Plaza include:
- Three Bright Pathways. Colorful lights lead visitos from convenient parking to the heart of the Arts Plaza.
- The Drawing Room. A shaded grove invites contemplation and reflection. The sound of water from a Maya Lin signature fountain, a water table, draws visitors to this area. Seating is available on granite whispering benches that play music, poetry, and other sounds.
- The Screening Room. An outdoor amphitheater seating 200 was carved out of a natural bowl, echoing Maya Lin's earth sculptures. The screening room welcomes audiences for plays, intimate music performances, film screenings, and appearances by guest artists.
- The Digital Exhibition Space. Internet-linked video screens show works of art from around the world. Constantly changing offerings help introduce visitors of all ages to many different artworks.
- Landscape Design. Landscaping for the Arts Plaza focuses on the earth itself as a sculptural element. Fragrant and colorful plantings, many low-water plants native to Southern California, are designed to stimulate all five senses.