Opening of The Forum to be celebrated March 27
LAWRENCE — An event to celebrate the completion of The Forum, an addition to Marvin Hall, will take place from 3-5 p.m. Friday, March 27. The extension, located on Marvin’s second floor just south of its main entrance on Jayhawk Boulevard, includes a 121-seat lecture hall, commons and breakout space.
“This new space has significantly enhanced the culture of the school by providing a place of arrival, interaction and exhibition for all of our programs and students, faculty and staff,” Dean John Gaunt saiid. “These are amenities that the school has lacked throughout its 100-year history.”
The Forum is distinguished from other buildings because it was designed and constructed by 18 fifth-year students enrolled in the Department of Architecture’s Studio 804 program. They completed the monumental task in about a year, starting in fall 2013.
The building is extremely complex compared with most buildings, even those designed by professionals and built by contractors. It features a prototypical system that provides natural ventilation through an under-floor air plenum, and it has cedar louvers that track the sun, automatically adjusting to exterior conditions. A fern-filled green wall is installed at the rear of the auditorium.
Studio 804 is directed by of J.L. Constant Professor of Architecture Dan Rockhill and is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. Its last seven buildings have received the United States Green Building Council’s LEED Platinum rating, the most stringent sustainability award available. Other facilities the studio has constructed at KU include the Hill Engineering Research and Development Center, and the Center for Design Research on KU’s west campus.
Marvin Hall is located at 1465 Jayhawk Blvd.