Clio Logo
Highlights of Virginia Tech
Item 11 of 21
Burchard Plaza is located on the campus of Virginia Tech, in the small quadrangle between Burruss Hall and Cowgill Hall. This unique plaza is actually the roof of Burchard Hall, home of the School of Architecture + Design. It is distinguished by four glass pyramids—skylights that serve to illuminate the studio space below. Burchard Hall, which was constructed underground, houses the studios used by the industrial design program, faculty office space, and workshops for ceramics, plaster, and computer/digital media. A stairway leads from a kiosk in the plaza to the subterranean facilities.

(Exterior view) Burchard Plaza; image by Smash the Iron Cage - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39888412

(Exterior view) Burchard Plaza; image by Smash the Iron Cage - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39888412

(Interior view) School of Architecture + Design; image by Smash the Iron Cage - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39888414

(Interior view) School of Architecture + Design; image by Smash the Iron Cage - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39888414
Burchard Plaza is a unique pedestrian space located on the campus of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. The plaza, situated between Burruss Hall and Cowgill Hall, is actually the roof of Burchard Hall, home to the School of Architecture + Design's industrial design program. The plaza is distinguished by four glass pyramidal structures. The pyramids are skylights which allow natural light into the student workspaces below. A staircase leads from a kiosk in the plaza to the subterranean Burchard Hall.

Burchard Hall is named for Charles H. Burchard, founding dean of the College of Architecture and Urban Studies (CAUS). The structure was constructed underground, adjacent to Cowgill Plaza, in 1988 to preserve the popular pedestrian thoroughfare. It serves as additional studio space for the architecture and industrial design programs, faculty office space, and workshops.

The School of Architecture + Design is part of Virginia Tech's CAUS, which offers a highly-ranked and competitive undergraduate and graduate degree program. The facilities at Burchard include wood, metal, and plastics shops, photographic darkrooms for film processing and print-making, ceramics, graphics, and textile workshops, and computer/digital media laboratories.
"Burchard Hall." VT A+d · School of Architecture + Design, Virginia Tech. Accessed January 25, 2017. http://archdesign.vt.edu/facilities/burchard.

"Burchard Hall." Virginia Tech. Accessed January 25, 2017. https://www.vt.edu/about/buildings/burchard-hall.html.