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UVA Contemplative Sciences Center

Located on the grounds at the University of Virginia, the Contemplative Sciences Center will be a first-of-its-kind, pan-university facility supporting immersive, experiential, and participatory learning. The building includes spaces that serve as academic classrooms as well as co-curricular contemplative spaces for student personal growth and wellbeing. The Center opens to the Dell, inextricably linking the experience of the building to this prominent water element on the UVA Grounds. With an integral bridge and living garden pathway spanning the length of the building, the Center provides both a physical and psychological connection for students traveling from their dorms to the University’s central academic core. All interior studios visually and physically connect to gardens and courtyards, furthering the Center’s biophilic design and supporting the Center’s goals of innovation, creativity, and contemplative practice.

University of Virginia

Client

VMDO Architects

Architect of Record

Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects

Landscape Architect

Brightspot Strategy

Programming

Fox & Associates

Structural Engineer

AEI/Affiliated Engineers

MEP Engineer

Auerbach Glasow

Lighting Design

Auerbach Pollock Friedlander

Audio Visual Consultant

The Sextant Group

IT/Security Consultant

Will Kerner

Photography of Dell

Darren S. Higgins

Photography of Dell

VMDO Architects

Animation