Carnegie Visual Arts Center, Decatur, Alabama

Sherlock, Smith & Adams was initially contacted to complete a site/facility survey and develop a deficiencies assessment for the purpose of converting the historic Carnegie Library into a Visual Arts Center for the City of Decatur.

The building was originally constructed in 1904 with funding from the Carnegie Foundation and housed Decatur's main library for many years, until the library's needs outgrew the building. For approximately twenty years since the library moved out, the First Baptist Church (located across the street) used the building as a youth center. A number of local organizations and individuals had communicated to the City of Decatur that the building should be returned to public use because of its historic and architectural significance. These groups, along with the City of Decatur, have been working to transform the library into a much-needed community visual arts center.

SS&A prepared all of the documents to make their vision a reality. Several non-architectural elements were removed in order to return the building to its original grandeur. To complete the transition to public use, the design team needed to add handicap access and new egress doors. The egress addition complements the existing architecture, creating a seamless transition between old and new.

The interior strategy for the design was to restore the sublime Classical features to peacefully frame a space where visitors may quietly focus and reflect on the art and its meaning. A light cove above the center of the upper floor houses a fresco painted by local artists to depict the North Alabama sky.