Dezeen School Shows: a museum clad in tiles made from ceramics is included in Dezeen’s latest school show by students at California Baptist University.

Also featured is a care facility for people with Alzheimer’s and an educational centre that integrates spaces for spirituality as well as academia.

California Baptist University

Institution: California Baptist University
School: College of Architecture, Visual Arts and Design
Course: Architecture Program
Tutors: Krysten Allbeck, Ryan Chung, Susan Duemer, Aaron Greene, Keelan Kaiser, Young Lee, Matthew Niermann, David Ogoli, Katherine Kaford, Mark Roberson, Karim Youssef, Jacob Slagill, Lydia Hreniuc and Xavier Adrian

School statement:

“California Baptist University (CBU) architecture students design for the public good.

“The architecture programme at CBU prepares students to serve as design professionals rooted in the Christian faith tradition.

“This unique approach to architectural education encourages students to be inspired and guided by faith perspectives as they endeavour to serve the public good.

“The CBU architecture programme offers an accelerated five-year accredited Master of Architecture degree in the Inland Empire area of Southern California, USA, and features a variety of opportunities for interdisciplinary inquiry, professional development and global study and engagement.

“The design curriculum within the CBU architecture programme emphasises an analytical and data-driven approach to understanding the impact of architecture on human experience and the natural environment across a range of project types.

“The work in this school show represents the imagination of a plurality of questions and courses by students who, as a whole, participate in critical investigations of design, material and the ephemeral.”

MemoryScape by Christopher Diaz

“The design is a blend of nature and architecture, with an angled and staggered layout that follows the rhythms of the landscape to create an environment that fosters a sense of security, calm and wellbeing.

“The facility includes four modules, each thoughtfully designed with mirrored layouts, strategically staggered and interconnected through a zig-zag path, which, when combined with monitored courtyards, creates a dynamic space that offers therapeutic benefits for residents with Alzheimer’s.

“MemoryScape, a memory care facility, is a harmonious blend of four mirrored trapezoidal buildings that follow the natural rhythms of the mountain landscape, symbolising the weaving of memories.

“Its consistent interior layout, zig-zag exterior paths and surfaces create an environment that fosters continuity, security and cognitive stimulation, offering individuals with Alzheimer’s a therapeutic haven for memory preservation.”

Student: Christopher Diaz
Course: ARC510 Advanced Architecture Design
Tutor: Keelan Kaiser

Memory Care by Alyssa Lee

“The Wrightwood Memory Care facility seamlessly blends with its undulating landscape, restoring the site’s hill-like form.

“The facility integrates nature into every aspect of residents’ experiences, from interior courtyards that bring the outdoors inside, to supervised gardens and meandering trails that encourage exploration.

“Each space offers multiple opportunities for residents to connect with the environment, engage in sensory experiences that stimulate memory and evoke moments of joy.”

Student: Alyssa Lee
Course: ARC510 Advanced Architecture Design
Tutor: Keelan Kaiser

Dohan Museum by Nikolas Kaiser

“This project is in memory of Dosan Ahn Chang Ho, a Korean independence activist during the Japanese occupation of Korea in 1910.

“The architecture creates a processional narrative of three ‘acts’, the first being the community centre, followed by the museum and concluding in the memorial lookout.

“These three acts form a spinal arrangement that follows the shape of the topography and land.

“Guests experience these distinct environments, with each space abstractly representing different moments in the timeline.

“The black granite wall symbolises strength and permanence, guiding visitors through its interior and exterior volumes and thresholds, representing Dosan’s leadership and guidance of his people to freedom.”

Student: Nikolas Kaiser
Course: ARC412 Architecture Design
Tutor: Young Seop Lee

Denoument Theatre by Sarah Schober

“The project is a mixed-use theatre that intends to capture the vibrancy and drama of the performing arts in an architectural form.

“The dramatics of a performance can only reach their crescendo through the tension and suspense of the events prior to the viewers’ arrival.

“Therefore, the theatre takes on the role of a living actor, which excites and tempts the viewer to engage with their own emotions and arise from the level of the real to the level of the fantastical.”

Student: Sarah Schober
Course: ARC312 Architecture Design
Tutor: Krysten Allbeck

Chicago Tower by Joao Vitor Cousseau Grazziotin

“Chicago’s towering skyscrapers, a symbol of human ambition, hold the potential to overwhelm with their massive singularity of form – isolating the human connection.

“The design proposal intentionally utilises the monumental scale of the building’s structural diagrid to create spaces and patterns at the tower’s base for human encounters.

“Additionally, as the diagrid continues upward, it guides the observer’s eye across a dynamic facade that plays with created patterns of light and shadow, breaking down the high rise’s potential heaviness and overpowering nature.

“The design allows us to retain the glory of Chicago’s building tradition with a structurally driven design while offering a more subtle interaction fit for human connection.”

Student: Joao Vitor Cousseau Grazziotin
Course: ARC412 Architecture Design
Tutor: Dr Matthew Niermann

Leimert Park Cultural Centre by Harrison Coe

“The Leimert Park Museum and Cultural Centre focuses on meshing the past and the future.

“The presence of guests acts as the anchor that ties together the history of Leimert Park to its future.

“The views from the past look to the older city and the views from educational spaces look to the future of the park.

“The open plans allow for a journey through the past and up to the future as you ascend into the building.”

Student: Harrison Coe
Course: ARC515 Advanced Architecture Design
Tutor: Aaron Green

Culinary Charter School by Gustavo Huitron

“Architecture and the culinary arts have the potential to reach out and extend into many cultures and communities to bring together and unite people, slicing the veil that exists between races and cultures.

“Food is a commonality that connects people of all backgrounds and is the centre of many cultural and social traditions.

“The Crossroads Culinary Arts Institute provides the city of San Bernardino, California, with an opportunity for its students to learn and expand on their cross-cultural culinary knowledge while giving back to the community and presenting what they have learned.”

Student: Gustavo Huitron
Course: ARC412 Architecture Design
Tutor: Xavier Adrian

Caltech Recreation and Wellness by Camryn Hartke

“The Caltech Recreation and Wellness Centre is rooted in Caltech’s mission to expand human knowledge and benefit society through research integrated with education.

“This project strives to serve its users through the exploration and implementation of different biological functions, similar to the numerous noteworthy architectural projects on campus that represent the research conducted within them.

“This design approach is an extension of Caltech’s technological spirit and cutting-edge reputation.”

Student: Camryn Hartke
Course: ARC515
Tutor: Ryan Chung

Christian Studies Centre by Cabot Ferguson

“MIT is a campus of brilliant, technical minds always looking for new ways to approach their respective fields.

“A theology department from this institute would share this approach – the MIT Christian Studies Centre must approach spirituality and transcendence through the lens of the academic vernacular.

“This is achieved through an investigation into how transcendence fits into the realm of our measurable and rational reality.

“The spaces within the centre aim to address the individual where they are at in their distance or proximity to the Lord.

“The centre is divided in half – one side representative of one’s spiritual walk and the other catering closer to the academic – and both paths culminate in the chapel, a space for self-reflection and a place to encounter the warmth of God’s grace.”

Student: Cabot Ferguson
Course: ARC410 Architecture Design
Tutor: Dr David Ogoli

Nexus Museum by Louis Roa

“The Nexus Museum, located in Los Angeles, California, aims to celebrate the heritage of Leimert Park and African cultures.

“The building is surrounded by a ceramic tile cladding system that expresses the dynamic ambience of the neighbourhood by utilising a building material frequently used globally – thus connecting the various cultures residing in Leimert Park.

“This design explores ways of channelling light into various spaces with the orientation of the tile placement while creating moments for residents and visitors to enjoy exhibits and discoveries found within the museum.”

Student: Louis Roa
Course: ARC515 Advanced Architecture Design

Partnership content

This school show is a partnership between Dezeen and California Baptist University. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.

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