Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts consolidates and enhances all facilities and programs related to the study of the visual arts and architecture. The two new buildings, Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum and Earl E. and Myrtle E. Walker Hall are arranged in an ensemble with the existing arts buildings to form a "mini-campus" that cloisters a series of outdoor spaces. The Kemper Museum is envisioned as a "center piece" that both establishes a symbol for the visual arts on campus and serves the larger St. Louis community. The building is organized around a vaulted, double-height atrium intended as a symbolic multi-purpose space. Three galleries and a library open onto this hall. The Walker Hall houses divisions of the Art School requiring heavy infrastructure. These studios are arranged as open spaces that enable the highest level of flexibility. To maximize open space all fixed core elements are concentrated at the ends of the building. The new buildings are clad in limestone and a variety of light glazing elements. The ensemble of traditional and new materials create a harmonious dialogue with the existing architectural context.
