In a serene setting alongside a Pacific lagoon, the Art, Design & Architecture Museum at the University of California, Santa Barbara provides intimate access to art. Through rotating installations of its permanent collections along with special exhibitions and programs, the AD&A Museum is both a teaching museum, committed to the development of critical thinking and visual literacy in support of the University’s goals of education, research, and service, and a resource for the wider Santa Barbara community.
The UCSB Arts building was constructed in 1957, and contains the Department of Art, Department of the History of Art and Architecture, and the Art, Design & Architecture Museum. The building was designed by the architecture firm Pereira & Luckman and at the time it was built, was the largest building in Santa Barbara County. The two story building is sited along a sloping site overlooking the campus lagoon, with ocean views in the distance. A visitor can walk along the exterior corridors, framed by overhanging second floor walkways and topped with a red-tiled hipped roof. Courtyards are filled with places for students to sit and study between classes, some with tables and benches designed by art students and staff.
The University Center, commonly known as the UCen, is the central hub of the university. From the starting point of the tour at the Arts building, walk east, with Storke Tower on your left, to the next building. Placed along the campus lagoon, the UCen contains the University Bookstore, The Hub concert venue, university post office, campus printing facility, and many restaurants and quick food options. Along the eastern side of the building, an addition to the original 1964 building includes the Corwin Pavilion event center and the Multicultural Center.
The Music Building is a wonderful example of the cooperation between architecture firms in the design and construction of campus buildings. The original building was designed and constructed in 1954 by executive architects Pereira & Luckman. An addition was added in 1969 by the firm Arendt, Mosher, and Grant. The addition seamlessly added a branch library and additional classroom, rehearsal, and concert space to the original building. The building is sited in a prime location on campus-- between the Library and the University Center, adjacent to the iconic Storke Tower-- and its covered walkways and welcoming corridors allow for a cool respite from the hot sun.
As the intellectual heart of campus, the UCSB library is also the oldest building on campus. The building dates back to when the area was transitioning from a World War II Marine Base into a university campus. The original library was much smaller, built in 1952 it was designed by Chester Carjola and was part of the larger campus plans by Soule and Murphy. Actually cutting edge for its time, the library was outfitted to be modern with a typing room, classrooms, and a patio. The entirety of the library as it appears today was built in sections, called “units”, periodically throughout the University’s history. The original drawings and design look remarkably similar to the Arts building, with patterned brick around the exterior and light colored concrete walls.
Across the library stands Kerr Hall, a monolithic grey building with sharp edges without windows that stands out compared to the light and bright library. The dark entryway lacks any ornamentation making it easy to overlook. Instead of a red tiled roof and beige facade, dark exposed concrete creates a severe silhouette. This striking difference in architecture is a reflection of the 1970’s and the social unrest on campus and in Isla Vista, making it one of the most well known eras in UCSB history.
Designed and built by Robert A.M. Stern in 1994, Physical Sciences North stands in contrast to the low hanging Arts Building and other 1950’s era stripped back and open modern designs. The prominent columns at the entrance, decorative circles below the windows and rectangular shape with a slightly sloped roof set the building apart from the other more utilitarian buildings on the UCSB campus. The architect wanted the building to look very classic and traditional, purposefully built to look older compared to the Chemistry Hall. Built next to Buchanan Hall and the Chemistry buildings, it stands apart as a more stylized and arguably aesthetically pleasing building, pulling on classic architectural references within it to create the look of a conservative yet modern academic building.
The Chemistry Building stands apart from other buildings purely because of scale, its large and sprawling mass demands attention and instantly marks itself as important. The building is located immediately to the right of the Physical Sciences North building along the long grass stretch uniting the science buildings and was built in the 1960’s by the architects Albert C. Martin and Associates. It’s architecture mimics that of Broida Hall directly across the pathway and is a part of the “late campus standard” style of building, including hallmark hipped roofs, concrete block columns, a gridded facade, and exposed red-brown patterned concrete.
Standing behind Davidson Library, Broida Hall's architectural style was coined as the “late campus standard”, and is a part of a set of buildings built during the late 1960’s. This style is the most common and prolific on the UCSB campus, as most of the buildings were constructed during this time by the architects Charles Luckman Associates. As stated in the ADA Museum website; “the architectural vocabulary highlights the horizontal lines, re-enforced concrete, and overhanging sunshades on the windows as part of the "late campus standard" architectural style that unified the campus architecture. Beige colored grid patterns and utilitarian design make these buildings appear purely practical and unmemorable. Almost similar to the design of Kerr Hall’s brutalism, they have large windows lining all the walls, with overhanging concrete serving as sun-shades.
Standing adjacent to Davidson Library and representing the most recent additions to the UCSB campus, the bioengineering building is a sleek glass, steel, and concrete construction. Built in 2017, the building encapsulates and visually represents the sciences on campus with its modern design that conveys innovation. The building resembles others built around the same time that are relatively new and overall update the aesthetics of the campus to appear more modern and cutting edge. This building in particular presents an interesting visual contrast to the more traditional and classically inspired Physical Sciences North building.
Rising out the middle of campus as a major landmark and one of the tallest buildings in Santa Barbara County, Stroke Tower stands as the most recognizable features of UCSB. Finished in 1969, the tower was named after Thomas More Storke, who was a major figure in the development of Santa Barbara and UCSB. More than just a tower, the offices for the University’s radio KCSB, yearbook offices of La Cumbre and the Daily Nexus, the University’s newspaper are housed beneath the tower. At 175 feet tall, the Tower is one of the main way-finding landmarks on the UCSB campus. The wide lawn on the north side of the Tower is a prominent site for rallies, demonstrations, and vigils. The concrete plaza on the south side of the Tower serves as the site of concerts and performances throughout the school year.
This Tour is a Walking Tour.
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A walking tour of the University of California, Santa Barbara campus, featuring some of the most iconic and recognizable buildings at the university. The entries on this tour were created as part of the undergraduate internship program at the Art, Design & Architecture Museum.
