Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Eastern Michigan University to Start Construction on New Arts Complex

  • By Matt Jones
  • 04/20/23

Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Mich., will soon begin construction on a new $7.5-million arts complex, according to a university news release. A groundbreaking ceremony for the Windgate Arts Complex, part of the university’s School of Art and Design, is scheduled for Thursday, April 20.

The facility will measure in at 24,000 square feet and is intended to be a collaborative, creative environment for making art. It will play home to spaces for sculpture, ceramics, 3D design, digital fabrication, and metalsmithing. The university will also partner with local organizations like the Riverside Arts Center to offer summer workshops to the community at large.

Funding for the project is coming in part from a $3.2-million investment from the arts advocacy group Windgate Foundation, according to local news.

“The Windgate Foundation and EMU matching grant, along with the initial matching grant, will allow our students and faculty the opportunity to work in one unified 3D Arts Complex,” said Sandra Murchison, EMU professor and Director of the School of Art and Design, in a news release. “The new space will offer sufficient crossover between disciplines to create the types of mixed media works that we aim to teach our students to craft.”

The facility will be located in the northwest corner of campus and is expected to be completed by the end of 2023, according to local news.

“It has been a genuine thrill to see this dream evolve into reality for the School of Art and Design and the EMU community,” said Murchison.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Deferred Maintenance Issues Growing at Universities, Gordian Reports

    U.S. colleges and universities are falling increasingly behind on facilities maintenance and repair, according to Gordian’s 13th annual State of Facilities in Higher Education report. The deferred capital renewal burden has reached $156 per gross square foot, an 8% increase over the previous year.

  • Moline-Coal Valley School District to Consolidate Two Schools into New Facility

    The Moline-Coal Valley School District in Moline, Ill., recently broke ground on a new elementary school that will consolidate the students and staff from two existing schools, according to local news. Robert Ontiveros Elementary School will serve as the new home for Lincoln-Irving Elementary School and Willard Elementary School.

  • Zurn Elkay Releases 2025 Sustainability Report

    Zurn Elkay Water Solutions recently announced the release of its annual sustainability report, according to a news release. The 2025 report discusses the organization’s efforts to maintain good environmental stewardship and the solutions provided in helping customers meet sustainability goals.

  • 144-Year-Old High-School Campus Debuts New Academic Facility

    San Diego High School (SDHS) in San Diego, Calif., recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new student services and classroom building; the project is part of a larger SDHS Whole Site Modernization project that began in 2022.