The Miami-based arts institution Oolite Arts, formerly ArtCenter/South Florida, announced today that it had tapped the Barcelona-based architecture firm Barozzi Veiga to design its new campus in Miami’s Little River neighborhood. Barozzi Veiga was recently in the news with the announcement that it would be hired to redesign the Art Institute of Chicago.
Oolite Arts, founded 36 years ago, helps Miami-based artists by providing them with free studio space, exhibition opportunities and financial assistance.
"No two designs of Barozzi Veiga's are alike,” said Dennis Scholl, president and chief executive of Oolite Arts. “They are always responsive to the areas where they are located. We loved that approach, and also their extensive experience in the cultural sector.” Scholl added that the new space will “enable us to better meet the needs of both visual artists and the community”.
Oolite Arts said that in addition to studio space for its artist residency program, the new home would also feature a top-tier exhibition space, a theater for lectures and film screenings, and classrooms for the 350-plus art classes offered each year to the community by professional artists. Plans for the building will be released later this year.