The arts at Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus are getting a major upgrade.
Five new state-of-the-art music rooms will be made available to students next year, as well as a fully refurbished and expanded visual arts wing. Construction will begin this summer and the new space will be unveiled in the fall.
Modern, spacious visual arts facilities
The visual arts space will completely renovate existing classrooms and studios on the first floor of the Lowenstein Center at 60th Street and Columbus Avenue. Improvements will include updated furniture, a more open layout and new state-of-the-art lighting fixtures. There will also be a brand new seminar room and significantly increased storage space to support more ambitious and diverse exhibitions. Centered around the Lipani Gallery, the space will host solo and group exhibitions of student work as well as that of professional artists, architects and designers.
Stephen Apicella-Hitchcock, clinical associate professor of photography and head of the visual arts program, said such improvements will greatly increase opportunities for all students and allow the gallery to operate at a professional level.
“Creativity is one of the main aspects that people will need in the future in order to see opportunities where others don’t see them,” he said of the benefits of exposure to art. “When you put artists, actors and musicians together with an espresso machine, something’s bound to happen.”
Father Grimes Music Center
The music department will also be joined by an updated wing, which will include the Father Grimes SJ Music Center, a new five-room suite named for Robert Grimes, SJ, dean emeritus of Fordham College at Lincoln Center.
“It enriches the life of the community tremendously,” Grimes, a former professor of ethnomusicology, said by phone of the growing musical footprint on campus. The program is funded in part by private donors and alumni eager to honor Grimes’ contributions to Fordham music.
Rendering of the new Father Grimes Music Center.
The program features two private practice rooms, two ensemble rooms for bands and groups, and a large rehearsal room that will house Fordham’s performing ensembles as well as professional programs such as the Fordham Composers Studio .
The enhanced facilities will also feature recording capabilities and technology updates such as the Wenger VAE rehearsal system, a playback process that allows students to change the sound of a room to mimic different environments such as a cathedral, auditorium or recital hall.
“I’m delighted that the school is investing in the arts on this campus and that it is directly translating into something our students can take advantage of,” said Dr. Daniel Ott, associate professor of music theory and music. “I want students to feel recognized in this way and I think this will do that.”
for the whole community
The program is led by Dr. Laura Auricchio, dean of Fordham College at Lincoln Center.
When Auricchio began planning the project, she sent out a student survey asking for wish lists for the new music space, and she expected to get a few dozen responses at most.
Instead, hundreds of students answered the question, and most were not music majors.
“Students are interested in music and art, whether as a career or not,” Auricchio said. “I firmly believe that music and art do have an impact on their well-being. Creative expression is truly necessary and contributes to the mental health of our students.
Rendering of the updated visual arts classroom.
