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Glassell School of Art

5101 Montrose Boulevard
  • Architect
  • Year Built
    1978
  • Building Type
    Commercial
  • Neighborhood
    Museum District
  • Quadrant
    SW
  • Status
    Mod No More

By the mid-1970s, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston needed a new facility for its school of art to accommodate the growing student body. Under the guidance of Museum director William C. Agee, and with a generous donation from Alfred Glassell, Jr., a plan for an approximately 42,000-square-foot building was drawn up by architects Eugene Aubry and R. Nolen Willis of prominent Houston firm S.I. Morris Associates. The building—a two-story space made from concrete and glass block, and located one block north of the Museum—represented the first time the school had a home of its own in its 52-year history. The Glassell School of Art opened to the public on January 13, 1979.

Sadly, the building was demolished in 2017 and replaced with a new building designed by Stephen Holl Architects.