MCAD - Media Lab

Minneapolis, MN

Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD) asked us to explore a series of options for renovating and updating their current facility, housed since 1974 in a beautiful Kenzo Tange building. A two-year exploration and master plan created a roadmap for thoughtful and cost-effective renovation and expansion within the Tange building, reacting to changes in both media and technology. The first of the many changes to be finished is the media laboratory, or M/LAB. As described by the MCAD faculty, “M/Lab is a state-of-the-art learning center for the media arts that positions MCAD at the top of industry standards.” 13,000-square-feet of classrooms, studios, darkrooms, and exhibition space support the studio majors in animation, filmmaking, photography, and web design. The masthead of the new space is the Black Box Experimental Space, a flexible, light-controlled gallery space for multimedia, digital, and projected installations. Its polished black glass exterior stands in subtle but deliberate contrast to the minimalist white environment of the Tange interior.

This 13,282-square-foot space fosters innovation and collaboration by allowing the creative energies of animation, film, multimedia, photography, and web development to merge. 

• Black Box Gallery 

• Analog and digital print studios 

• Film and animation production studios 

• Digital photo lab 

• Sound recording and mixing studio 

• Web and multimedia studio 

• High-tech classrooms 

• 2 multi-use production studios