This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Sept. 5, 2013 - A vacant lot in Grand Center will be transformed into a performing and education space next summer, under the direction of Brooklyn’s Freecell architectural firm.
Freecell was announced today as the winner of the PXSTL competition, an urban design-build project of the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts and Washington University’s Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts. PXSTL competitors were asked for their ideas for transforming a vacant lot on Washington Blvd., across from the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts and next door to Bruno David Gallery.
Freecell’s canopied platform concept was selected from among three final projects for its goal of creating a site for cultural and social activity through community engagement.
“Freecell’s focus on community collaborations and participation as well as their interest in exploring atmosphere and spatial dynamics is particularly pertinent to this discussion and is very much in line with the Pulitzer’s own program,” said Pulitzer director Kristina Van Dyke, in a press release.
“PXSTL represents the collaborative culture of our school and the arts in St. Louis, bringing together art, architecture, and design in a way that makes a meaningful contribution to the community,” said Fox School Dean Carmon Colangelo, in the release.
