with Lake|Flato Architects

Situated at the confluence of the San Antonio River and the dense urban grid of downtown, the Southwest School of Art occupies an intersection of cultures as well as spaces.

Driven by the expansion of the school’s MFA program, the master planning efforts required rigorous programming and assessment of existing and needed studios and learning spaces. However, the architectural solution extends far beyond the footprint of new buildings. Seeking to dismantle the traditional "intramural" attitude of higher education -- where learning is walled off from the public -- we instead worked to weave the campus into the city’s fabric.

Leveraging the unique geography of the San Antonio River, the design treats the waterway not as a boundary but as a welcoming front porch, inviting pedestrians from its banks to venture onto the campus. A bold move to convert a segment of vehicular street into a pedestrian-only zone unites the fragmented campus and connects it with the central public library, prioritizing student safety and public engagement over through traffic.

This project is not just an expansion; it is a gate through which students and public alike may pass into a better urban future. It transforms a former cloister into a public, porous intersection of art, education, and civic life.