Continuing their relationship on campus, HED (Architect of Record) and Moore Ruble Yudell (Consulting Design Architect) have designed the Santa Monica High School's (Samohi) Exploration Building and Gold Gymnasium in phase three of the school’s ongoing redevelopment plan.
The three-story Exploration Building creates a new hub connecting the Discovery and Innovation Buildings to the heart of campus. As a Career Technical Education (CTE) classroom building, it houses various learning labs for Project Lead the Way (PLTW), as well as studio space for the media and entertainment and visual arts programs. The ground level of the building consists of learning labs that are visually open to the paseo to the south, an outdoor workspace to the north with a view of the central lawn and the Santa Monica mountains, and an art plaza and new amphitheater to the east. The second and third levels of the Exploration Building house learning labs and design labs, connected by a two-story atrium programmed as a student commons and gathering space for pitch presentations and exhibitions. Even the rooftop celebrates innovative learning with several open-air classrooms that are shaded with photovoltaic structures, providing exceptional views of the campus and access to fresh air and natural light.
The Gold Gymnasium building is built on a steep hillside along Pico Blvd, with the existing hill rising twenty-nine feet from west to east. The gym building gracefully steps up the hill with three main levels that connect by a continuous undulating curved roof. This design approach highlighted the existing landscape of the Samohi site and reduced the amount of excavation required. This level change allowed the team to create three key spaces—the main gym, auxiliary gym, and dance studio—which are linked with a dramatic curved roof and telescoping views throughout the entire building.
Together, the Exploration Building and Gold Gymnasium create an epicenter of interconnection. From indoor-outdoor learning spaces, physical architectural connections, and integrated athletics, visual arts, and CTE programs, these two facilities set up Samohi and its students for a vibrant, successful, adaptable future.
The three-story Exploration Building creates a new hub connecting the Discovery and Innovation Buildings to the heart of campus. As a Career Technical Education (CTE) classroom building, it houses various learning labs for Project Lead the Way (PLTW), as well as studio space for the media and entertainment and visual arts programs. The ground level of the building consists of learning labs that are visually open to the paseo to the south, an outdoor workspace to the north with a view of the central lawn and the Santa Monica mountains, and an art plaza and new amphitheater to the east. The second and third levels of the Exploration Building house learning labs and design labs, connected by a two-story atrium programmed as a student commons and gathering space for pitch presentations and exhibitions. Even the rooftop celebrates innovative learning with several open-air classrooms that are shaded with photovoltaic structures, providing exceptional views of the campus and access to fresh air and natural light.
The Gold Gymnasium building is built on a steep hillside along Pico Blvd, with the existing hill rising twenty-nine feet from west to east. The gym building gracefully steps up the hill with three main levels that connect by a continuous undulating curved roof. This design approach highlighted the existing landscape of the Samohi site and reduced the amount of excavation required. This level change allowed the team to create three key spaces—the main gym, auxiliary gym, and dance studio—which are linked with a dramatic curved roof and telescoping views throughout the entire building.
Together, the Exploration Building and Gold Gymnasium create an epicenter of interconnection. From indoor-outdoor learning spaces, physical architectural connections, and integrated athletics, visual arts, and CTE programs, these two facilities set up Samohi and its students for a vibrant, successful, adaptable future.
