DIGSAU Wins an Honor Award for their “The Clay Studio” Project

Congratulations to DIGSAU on winning an Honor Award for their “The Clay Studio” project.

Founded in 1974, The Clay Studio was envisioned as a stepping-stone for students fresh out of art school, offering affordable studio space and shared equipment. Today The Clay Studio is renowned for its unique ability to broaden ceramics’ impact on contemporary art while simultaneously instructing students at all levels. Located in the South Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia, the new structure draws inspiration from the surrounding context of Philadelphia’s early 20th century industrial warehouses.

Traditional masonry techniques, such as raking and corbelling, are reinterpreted at a monumental scale to create a volumetric, undulating façade highlighted by a vivid display of shadows throughout the day. The building’s masonry elements connect to the basic techniques of ceramic craft: shaping clay into a desired form, and firing the clay form at high temperature to create durable finished piece. The primary façade incorporates a textural buff-colored bricks referencing the brittle unglazed bisqueware pottery produced after a single kiln firing. This neutral backdrop is punctuated by bright accents of orange “glazeware” marking important public spaces within the building.

Check out the short video highlighting this project:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2tfuyt8MpA