New West Valley academic building serves expanding enrollment and artistic offerings
 One of the largest learning spaces on the campus makes its debut in time for the fall semester

By Dolores Tropiano, ASU News
August 28, 2025

The new academic and office building on Arizona State University’s West Valley campus offers even more than what its name might suggest.

In addition to much-needed space for classes and working, the building — which opened this month — is home to the relocated ArtSpace West gallery, expanded to nearly 2,400 square feet to better accommodate the needs of new kinds of programming such as video projection, sound art and larger immersive exhibits.

Expansion is the theme of the academic and office building. At 55,045 square feet, it’s one of the largest learning spaces on the West Valley campus, reflecting expanded enrollment and ASU’s commitment to serve its community.

“The remarkable growth of West Valley campus enrollment over the past two years — particularly in our three new schools1 — has created a need for both additional classroom and faculty office spaces where students learn, create, meet with and learn from their professors and connect with each other,” said Todd Sandrin, vice provost of the West Valley campus and dean of the New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences.    


The three-story building on the west side of the 300-acre campus will also provide new computer labs and a multiuse, 1,500-square-foot drawing studio and shared project room, used for student coursework in exhibition design, collaborative art-making and guest artist workshops.

“The building increases our ability to even more fully offer classes for students at times most convenient for their schedules,” Sandrin said.

The classrooms are connected to the relocated student gallery and blend seamlessly into the innovative design of the new building, creating a direct and functional connection. 

Marianne Kim, an associate director and professor in the School of Humanities, Arts and Cultural Studies, said that the innovative design creates “a spatial relationship between the academic exercises and the professional, community-based gallery.”

“It's sort of like an art hub in some ways,” Kim said.

‘No other space like this on campus’

Charles St. Clair said the design of ArtSpace West was conceived as a teaching and curricular space.

“There is no other space like this on campus,” said the professor of practice in the School of Humanities, Arts and Cultural Studies.

The gallery prioritizes works of digital media, including installation and interactive art, and can feature intimate live performances. It offers integrated ethernet, Wi-Fi, and video and sound technology capability, allowing for high-speed and internet-connected multimedia displays.

“We will work with all ASU students, staff and community partners to install exhibits and events, providing a unique opportunity for all to learn and experience skills in gallery and installation settings,” St. Clair said. “With the help of the Interdisciplinary Arts and Performance faculty, they can learn about art handling, exhibition design, art installation and working with professional artists.”

Premiere plans

The premiere exhibition for the opening of the ArtSpace West gallery features a new multimedia adaptation of “House of Cards” (or “Chiang Kai-Shek”), written by award-winning American playwright Charles Mee. The piece, which explores ideas about memory and the power of the mind to tell itself stories, will open Sept. 18 and run through Oct. 2. New York actor Will Bond will be performing the piece.

“I am honored to see ASU’s School of Humanities, Arts and Cultural Studies bring together the writing of an American theater treasure, Chuck Mee, with the artistry of a 35-year veteran of the stage,” Kim said. “Our Interdisciplinary Arts and Performance students and I will have the opportunity to work alongside and experience up close and personal these luminaries of the performance world.” 

Kim, an interdisciplinary artist who works in multimedia installation and performance art, created video imagery for the piece. Oscar Jaime-Marcial, an IAP major with a minor in popular music, created the sounds for the piece. Jaime-Marcial is also an NCUIRE (New College Undergraduate Inquiry and Research Experiences) research assistant.

“House of Cards” is the first of a series of events that will take place over the next two semesters in the state-of-the-art gallery. ArtSpace West will host conventional exhibits of paintings and sculpture, including juried shows featuring art from local high school students. The gallery has already been used for opening receptions and will have a robust schedule for campus and community-facing exhibits.

“Hot Rods and Beyond,” a custom car show featuring Jimmy Smith, a local car illustrator, is on the calendar for January 2026, followed by “Super Bloom” in February, an ambient and drone music festival that will showcase local and internationally recognized electronic musicians.

“The gallery will serve as a vital space for community engagement, artistic expression and meaningful interpersonal dialogue,” St. Clair said.

This story originally appeared on ASU News.

1 The School of Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, part of the W. P. Carey School of Business; the School of Interdisciplinary Forensics, part of the New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences; and the School of Integrated Engineering, part of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering.