Project Description
The Reed College Performing Arts Building is a vibrant 78,000-square-foot building housing the school’s theatre, dance and music programs. Designed to offer a social and creative environment, wood was used to create unique and welcoming spaces that invite students to explore, pass through and become immersed in a central commons where community is fostered.
The atrium lobby features a three-story Douglas-fir wall crowned by a skylight providing an evolving show of shadow and light. Wood is also central to the building’s acoustic performance, with solid and perforated Douglas-fir wall panels and slat ceiling systems diffusing and absorbing sound in the atrium lobby and rehearsal hall. The studio theatre includes a red oak slat wall system made from a heritage tree that had fallen on the site during a storm. To improve student comfort, the dance studio and performance lab feature built-up sprung flooring made from plywood. The use of wood also helped the College meet its target of gold certification under the Earth Advantage green building program.