UC Merced’s La Galería art gallery has opened the show, “20 Years of UC Merced Art and Architecture,” to celebrate the design, development, and creative identity of California’s newest public research university right here in our local community.
“Whether you’re encountering the campus for the first time, or reflecting on its early years, this exhibition offers a compelling look at how place, purpose, and creativity converge to shape a university,” says Grace Garnica, the gallery manager who worked on the project with campus architect Phillip Woods and art director Collin Lewis.
On display are early renderings, concept sketches, design plans, models of new buildings on the horizon, and an expanded look at the university’s exhibition history both within the campus walls and in public spaces.
Viewers are invited to reflect on how the university’s architectural impact and artistic environment has taken shape in a region defined by migration, agriculture, and ecological complexity.
UC Merced was established in 2005, and it was put forth as the first new University of California campus of the 21st century.
“Over the past two decades, the campus has evolved from vision to reality — growing not only in size but also in identity, ambition, and creative expression,” Garnica says. “The campus’s architectural language draws on the Valley’s agricultural and industrial vernacular — durable materials, expressive yet utilitarian forms, and an emphasis on interdisciplinary work and social connections — while its landscape design foregrounds open space, water, and long views to the Sierra Nevada.”
The exhibit was made possible by campus and community support, including: BAR Architects & Interiors, HGW Architecture, Merced Signs, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), Solomon Cordwell Buenz (SCB), UC Merced Division of Physical Operations, Planning & Development, UC Merced Library, UC Merced Facilities Management, WRNS Studio, and ZGF Architects LLP.
La Galería is located on campus inside the El Portal building, room 120. The exhibit “20 Years of UC Merced Art and Architecture” will be on view through Dec. 13. Gallery hours are Thursdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m., and 2 p.m. – 6 p.m.