Brooks School Center for the Arts

The arts are at the forefront of life at Brooks School, where every student pursues an arts curriculum. Since completion of the Center for the Arts, student interest in the arts has increased, so much so that the curriculum has expanded to reflect this enthusiasm. The Center stands in a premier campus location, surrounded by historic clapboard buildings with steeply pitched roofs. Placing the Center on this site required careful demolition and the sensitive fitting of its footprint and aesthetic among existing buildings. The fully accessible building’s three distinct wings house three distinct arts concentrations, all connected by a wide, two-level “Arts Street.” The acoustic and environmental requirements of the arts concentrations contributed to the three-wing design, which carefully balances programmatic needs and sustainable solutions.

Status: Built
Location: North Andover, MA, US
Firm Role: Architect
Additional Credits: Consigli (Construction Management); Odeh Engineers (Structural); Altieri (MEP); Sladen Feinstein Integrated Lighting (Lighting); Acentech (Acoustics); Jensen Hughes (Code); A.T. Leonard & Associates (Landscape); Whitman and Bingham (Civil); Kalin Associates (Specifications); McPhail Associates LLC (Geotechnical); Jonathan Hillyer (Photography)

Seen from the west, the Center’s triangular clerestories and large expanses of glass reference nearby traditional wood-framed buildings. The transparency and warmth of the building invite the campus community to explore the open interior spaces. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer

The north-facing, light-filled painting studio looks out on the Arts Terrace and the dining hall. Durable finishes and flexible furnishings allow the studio to be easily rearranged as project needs change. Studio walls serve as temporary gallery spaces, where advanced art students display their evolving work in salon-style pinups. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer

Students from across campus use the Arts Street as a social space where they can meet and “hang out” with friends and classmates. The arts are on display to every visitor. Students and faculty use the Street for impromptu music performances, and large, wooden sliding doors can be opened during performances in the theater. Rooflights over stairwells and other floor openings bring natural light down through the center of the building, where students use the walls to showcase their current artworks. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer

The theater connects to the Arts Street with large openings on both building levels. Its multi-paned window offers a view of green space and the school chapel. These visual connections and unimpeded sightlines familiarize students with arts activities and the building interiors, encouraging them to explore subjects outside their areas of expertise. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer

The black box theater serves as a multipurpose space for acting, stagecraft, dance, and yoga classes, as well as for theater and dance rehearsals and performances. The theater can also be used for post-production functions. Finishes are utilitarian; the floors are frequently “chalked up” with stage markings and the mirrors covered with instructions written with glass-safe markers. Catwalks, lighting, and seating are flexible and often reconfigured. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer

Every classroom in the building, including the set design shop, has large windows that bring daylight into the center of the building. In response to the growing popularity of the dramatic arts program, the school has hired a new stagecraft instructor. A master carpenter, she will instruct students in back-of-stage skills for theater productions. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer

The theater production office serves as an informal classroom, offering a direct view of students learning to operate equipment. Since the completion of the Center for the Arts, theater productions have drawn in students from other disciplines, including English and History. Students use the production office as a collaborative space where they write, produce, record, and critique theater, dance, and musical performances. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer

The 3D-arts studio on the lower level has direct access to the Arts Terrace for outdoor projects. In addition to providing natural light, the glazed wall dissolves the division between inside and out and connects the arts program to the greater campus. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer

The north-facing art studios open onto the Arts Terrace, where students and faculty work on large-scale sculpture and projects. The full-height glazed wall invites students to experience the practice and production of art, showing students that both the building and the arts disciplines are open for exploration and study. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer

The choir room’s acoustic treatments enhance vocal sound. As the curriculum expands, so too must the spaces that support the program. Platforms and furnishings are moveable, allowing instructors to make quick changes
in room layout. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer

The music studios are acoustically separated from other building spaces, with vaulted ceilings that support student musicians. The rooms can be changed to suit an ensemble’s need, whether it be for advanced rock band practice or chamber music rehearsal. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer

Brooks supports creativity across the arts, from the more traditional visual disciplines of painting and drawing to more modern subjects such as digital illustration, video production, and digital music recording. Providing flexible rooms with support for state-of-the-art equipment allows multiple classes to share computing space. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer

Twin gables establish a local identity for the Center for the Arts. Drawing on vernacular forms and responding to the scale of surrounding buildings, the Center introduces contemporary design without disrupting a beloved campus precinct. Photo credit: Jonathan Hillyer