Jackson Dinsdale Art Center

Facility Summary

The central lobby area of the Jackson Dinsdale Art Center at Hastings College is a gathering place for students and a special event space for both college and community. The lobby opens into the gallery, large classroom, critique space and glass blowing studio to create a spacious area for guests to mingle, view art and watch students create.

Art Gallery & Critique Space
The 1,100 square-foot art gallery provides an impressive venue for a range of exhibitions by students, alumni and guest artists while serving as a teaching laboratory for anyone who wishes to explore art and engage the imagination. The 515 square-foot critique space, like the gallery, is located adjacent to the lobby and offers a venue for students to display works in progress or finished pieces for critique by professors and peers.

Located at the southwest corner of the building and visible from the exterior through glass walls, the art gallery acts as a beacon both day and night to highlight the importance of the art showcased within. The gallery is 30 feet, 6 inches square with a ceiling height of 15 feet. Walls are designed for easy refinishing and painting between shows and have a plywood substrate behind the drywall to allow artwork to be hung without additional support. Motorized shades can be deployed at the push of a button to darken the gallery as needed. The gallery and critique space are designed with a grid of track lighting to allow maximum flexibility for display layouts, piece sizes and piece formats including two-dimensional, three-dimensional and digital.

For more on the galleries, including exhibition schedules, click here.

Classrooms/Media Room
Two classrooms are designed for traditional classroom lectures but with flexibility for various activities and future uses. One classroom, located directly off the main lobby, can be used for lectures as well as other campus or community events. A second, larger classroom includes computers, backdrops and green screens for photography as well as space for three-dimensional digital art creation.

Glass Studio
The 4,650 square-foot glass studio is the best in the country for any college or university! It has five glory holes of various sizes, color ovens, glass furnaces and annealing ovens. The diffuse west light and north light along with proper ventilation provide an ideal environment for glass art. With garage doors opening both to the main lobby and the west exterior plaza, the studio is perfectly situated for events, drawing visitors into the space to see activities inside. The glass studio is also supported by a separate large storage space and a glass cold work room where students can fine tune their art on wet sanders, glass lathe, a diamond saw and more.

Metal Sculpture Studio
The 2,400 square-foot metal sculpture studio and adjacent 1,250 square-foot exterior metal studio allow ample space for students to create three-dimensional works of art. The studio has three dedicated welding bays, a variety of metal working equipment, and easy access to outdoor working space and deliveries.

Ceramics Studio
The main portion of the 1,775 square-foot ceramics studio, which is dedicated to the creation of ceramic art from clay, has throwing wheels, slab tables, and storage shelves. A clay mixing room keeps dust contained, and a separate glaze room allows glazing materials and operations to be organized and contained. An elect kiln room is adjacent to the main ceramics studio, as is a 520 square-foot covered outdoor kiln area.

Painting Studio
With ideal north light from the overhead clerestory, durable finishes, and ample storage space for supplies and canvases, the 1,225 square-foot painting studio provides a great environment for students to create paintings of varying color and scale.

Drawing Studio
The 1,200 square-foot drawing studio has customized track lighting to allow for flexible arrangement of lit objects to create shade and shadow for various vignettes.

Printmaking Studio
The 850 square-foot printmaking studio is equipped with three presses, acid fume hood, screen printing wash tube sink, hot plates, and storage spaces.

Student Studios
Two student studios provide advanced art students with dedicated workspaces for ongoing projects. These flexible spaces offer a secure and collaborative work environment while allowing students to focus on their skills.

Construction and Opening
To view JDAC construction photos and videos from it’s opening celebration, click here.