Alumni Center Architecture
Creating a Unique and Memorable Style
The Robert and Judi Prokop Newman Alumni Center will be a centerpiece of magnificent architecture in its location on the corner of Brescia Ave. and Hurricane Drive in Coral Gables. The four-story, 70,000 square-foot center, facing Mark Light Stadium, has been designed by world-renowned architect Michael Dennis to represent a unique setting for alumni, students and friends of the University of Miami to congregate in grand and intimate settings.
The design of the Alumni Center intends to reflect its setting, not simply replicating any discernable style. Incorporated into the design are opposing elements that create a comfortable, inviting space that is equally moving and powerful: courtyards with pergolas, stone and glass walls, wood beam ceilings and paneling, stone floors and fountains.
"This building should not be flown in from a corporate office park," Dennis said. "It should be more like a house or a villa. In a climate like this, colonnades, promenades, and courtyards are part of the program."
A dominant tradition of the University of Miami's architectural theme is the international style that was begun in the late 1940's: linear exterior walls with deeply shadowed thin windows, which will be prevalent in the Alumni Center. Echoing the classic elements of South Beach's art moderne hotels, the curved entrance and interior elements will create a memorable and unique atmosphere.
About the Architect
Michael Dennis, Boston-based architect and professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, infuses warmth and personal touches in his architecture to create an environment where people gather because they want to, not because they have to.
"There are many ways—some fun and some more serious—to make a building unique and give it personality," said Dennis, who has designed a number of masterful university buildings in his career over the past 30 years.
His most recent works have been the Science/Technology Building at Syracuse University and the first buildings in the extensive plan for Carnegie Mellon University.
Dennis has extensive teaching experience at Cornell, Harvard, Princeton, Rice, Columbia, Virginia and Yale, and his projects have received numerous awards and citations for his buildings and project plans.
In addition to design and teaching, Dennis has actively explored research concerning campus design and planning, examining the possibilities of buildings having their own independent identity but also relating to the continuity of the place and being part of the campus fabric.
