Located on the northeast corner of the “Old Crescent,” Owen Hall stands as a gateway point to the old historic quad of the Bloomington Campus. The building has been repurposed as the home for the College of Arts and Sciences and has undergone a series of updates and modernization efforts. As a result of a semester long, interdisciplinary student project, it was determined that the building needed to have a new identity that would support the college’s mission and bring life and energy back to the university’s core. Anderson + Bohlander was commissioned to lead a design effort that sought to realize the ideas and program elements outlined in the student projects. The formation of a new South Entry Plaza and North Entry Plaza were fundamental to the needs of the building and the University. The design of the South Entry Plaza features an expanded plaza off of the main building entry and stairwell to serve as an expanded arrival court and gathering place as this location serves as the gathering point for all in-coming freshman campus tours during orientation week. The design incorporates a custom limestone bench featuring the college’s mission statement engraved along the back face. The North Plaza was evisioned as a new outdoor classroom and study area where the building dumpsters and service area were located. A series of limestone walls and ramps create an accessible plaza space that features an area of crushed limestone paving and flexible seating. The college's mission statement is again repeated in a series of cut-out metal lettering cast into limestone bands that lead visitors to the north entry
