Ithaca
Cornell University's main campus is in Ithaca, New York, a small city with a big city outlook.
With about 29,000 year-round residents, Ithaca is remarkable for the diversity and erudition of its population, its commitment to the arts and civic life, and the natural beauty of the environment. AAP's physical footprint in Ithaca includes The Foundry, Milstein Hall, Rand Hall, Sibley Hall, and Tjaden Hall, all part of Cornell University's historic Arts Quad.
Learn more about scheduling a visit to the AAP Ithaca campus.
Mui Ho Fine Arts Library
A New Landmark Library
The Mui Ho Fine Arts Library in Rand Hall welcomes patrons to a facility that houses one of the best circulating collections of fine arts and design materials in the country. The new library was designed by architect Wolfgang Tschapeller (M.Arch. '87), whose goal for the project was a 21st-century interpretation of the grand reading rooms associated with great research collections.
Milstein Hall
Built to Inspire
Designed by Rem Koolhaas and OMA, the 47,000-square-foot Milstein Hall is home to the college's top-ranked architecture program. Opened in August 2011, the building includes 25,000 square feet of flexible studio space that connects to both Rand and Sibley halls, as well as the Bibliowicz Family Gallery. The 250-seat, state-of-the-art auditorium functions as a central events location within the college.
Other Landmarks
Home to the college's administration, the John Hartell Gallery, numerous classrooms, and several exhibition spaces for student work in the first-floor corridors, Sibley Hall was originally built in the late 1800s to provide a home for the Sibley College of Mechanical Engineering. Named for Hiram Sibley of Rochester, New York, one of the university's original trustees, the building began as a single structure (now West Sibley Hall), and over the next 30 years expanded to include the east wing, and the dome structure that joins the two sections together.
Tjaden Hall houses the Olive Tjaden Gallery, the Experimental Gallery, numerous classrooms and art studios, printmaking labs, and a darkroom. Formerly known as Franklin Hall, the structure was built during a university building boom in the late 19th century. Named for America's first great scientist, Benjamin Franklin, this first home for physics and chemistry on the Cornell campus was designed by the Reverend Charles Babcock, the university's first professor of architecture, who designed several campus buildings during his tenure. The building was completed in 1883. By 1906, the chemistry and physics departments had moved to new quarters, and the building became home to the Department of Art. In 1981 the structure became Olive Tjaden Hall, named for Olive Tjaden Van Sickle '25, a pioneering woman architect and artist whose substantial gift largely made possible the renovation of the building in 1998.
The Foundry is a sculpture studio and workshop for fine arts students, situated adjacent to Milstein Hall along the edge of Fall Creek Gorge. The large, uninterrupted interior space, evenly lit by tall windows on all four sides, provides a perfect space for sculptors. Students can also work outdoors, overlooking the gorge. The building was completed in the 1860s and was originally used as a blacksmith shop. By 1890, it was in use as part of the Sibley School of Mechanical Engineering. In the 1960s, the sculpture program was moved from the basement of Tjaden Hall to The Foundry, and later a bronze-casting facility was established behind it.
Rand Hall houses the newly reopened Mui Ho Fine Arts Library, one of the largest academic art and architecture libraries in the northeast. The building also houses the college's state-of-the-art fabrication facility on the first floor. Rand Hall was designed by the Ithaca firm of (Arthur N.) Gibb and Waltz, and opened in 1911, this industrial structure originally housed machine and pattern shops, and an electrical laboratory as part of the Sibley College of Mechanical Engineering. Donated by Mrs. Henry Lang, the building is named in memory of her father Jasper R. Rand, uncle Addison C. Rand, and her brother, Jasper R. Rand, Jr.
