Spencer, built in 1995 to accommodate the studio wing of the department, commands a high point in campus terrain. Designed by Carlos Jimenez, the stone and glass structure houses classrooms, studios, faculty offices and Wilde Gallery. Spacious hallways, typically covered with student work in progress, double organically and spontaneously as classrooms. In this conducive atmosphere and surrounded by a vibrant arts community, students can follow their own creativity in whatever direction they choose.
Opening off the lobby of Spencer Art building, Wilde Gallery is the primary student exhibition space on campus. Used for class exhibits, critiques and student initiated individual or group shows, the gallery enables students to complete the art-making experience by presenting their work to the public as finished product. End-of-semester exhibitions—-ranging from sculpture to artists’ books, and photography to architectural models—-offer the college community, in turn, compelling evidence of student accomplishments. Wilde Gallery thus reflects the department commitment to creative expression as well as dynamic exchange between makers and viewers.