From the Ground Up: Building UC Merced | Exhibition + Symposium
Thursday | Jan 29, 6 PM: Symposium, panel discussion, and reception
Free and open to the public
From the Ground Up: Building UC Merced, an exhibition situating UC Merced within the broader history of the University of California, is on view until February 21 in Bauer Wurster Gallery. The exhibition traces a parallel narrative between UC Merced, the system’s newest campus, and UC Berkeley, its oldest, and features works about UC Merced’s architectural, infrastructural, and institutional growth. A related symposium will take place Thursday, January 29 at 6 p.m.
The exhibition examines how University of California’s newest campus evolved over 20 years from open grazing land into what is now recognized as the most sustainable campus in the country, and the first U.S. research university to achieve net-zero carbon, energy and waste. Developed to serve an underserved, predominantly Hispanic/Latino population in California’s Central Valley, UC Merced also pioneered the nation’s largest public-private partnership for a university, fundamentally rethinking how campuses can be funded, built, and scaled.
The exhibition traces the campus’s architectural evolution through the vision and guiding principles that defined the University of California’s newest campus, three master plans and 16 key buildings, presenting archival material and design work that charts UC Merced’s conception, growth, and future trajectory.
The symposium brings together architects, planners, and academic leaders to situate UC Merced alongside earlier UC campuses such as Berkeley, exploring how ideas of campus planning, public investment, and regional identity have shifted, and what UC Merced’s “from the ground up” model offers as universities face climate mandates, enrollment pressures, and equity goals nationwide.
ACCESSIBILITY
Bauer Wurster Gallery is wheelchair accessible. If you require accommodations to fully participate in this event, please contact Mike Bond at least 10 days prior to the event.