Otis College Campus Expansion - Phase 1: renovation

The renovation of the 8-story Ahmanson Building, a city landmark and a prime example of Modernist commercial architecture, involved reconfiguring four of the eight floors, including replacing all MEP systems and providing all new FF&E. The project earned LEED Platinum certification while still maintaining the building’s historic character-defining features, including its distinctive precast concrete panel façade, whose staggered punched-window pattern references the IBM 029 punch card its original occupant was famous for creating.

A new lobby entry with floor to ceiling storefront glazing makes the building more transparent from the street. Large colored wall graphics provide a backdrop to showcase student work and announce the art and design program inside. The ground floor also gains a campus store, updated admissions and continuing education departmental suites and a new health & wellness center. On level 2, senior administration, Institutional Advancement, the Provost’s office, Career Placement, Financial Aid, and Student Services now share a single 15,500 sf floor, creating a seamless one-stop experience for students, staff, and visitors. This floor holds the president’s executive suite with a welcoming reception area and built-in seating in the waiting areas. Floor to ceiling interior glazing opens the main conference room and offices to the circulation core. Level 3 adds open studio classrooms and gallery space that display the work produced in the first two years of study to prospective students on tours. Multimedia labs were added in the basement, and the woodshop and printmaking studio on level 7 was updated.

Throughout the building, a palette of simple natural materials, rich textures, and deliberate pops of color to mark entry points, gathering spaces, and quiet retreats were implemented to help create a clear way-finding system and stronger sense of place. The palette complements the building’s brutalist aesthetic of concrete, steel, and glass and introduces a humanist element that enriches the space. The cost-conscious but impactful approach puts transparency, flexibility, and timelessness first, with color, pattern, and light working together to reflect the College’s identity as an art and design institution.