West Valley College, Visual Arts Building

The Visual Arts Building at West Valley College’s Cilker School of Art and Design transforms a quiet quadrant of the campus into a vibrant hub for art students and the greater college community. Nestled among oaks and redwoods, the 20,000 SF building promotes interaction between the studio activities and the natural surroundings. The hillside site made possible a double-height gallery and a flexible studio at the lower level, which serves as a collaborative project space. The exterior plaza encourages cross-pollination of disciplines and stimulates creative exchange among the students.

With clarity in form and function, and roots in their surroundings, Mark Cavagnero’s projects mirror and honor their communities. Since the firms founding in San Francisco in 1993, Mark Cavagnero has built the practice on flexible design, simple solutions, and a palette of elemental materials of glass, concrete, and wood. The firm’s consistent consideration of each project’s context has garnered clients’ trust, and has allowed the firm to drop architectural gems throughout the city of San Francisco and the greater Bay Area that tie their communities together.

2017- Architect- The Architect 50: Ranked #2 in Business

2016- Architect- The Architect 50: Top Design Firms in the Nation

2015- AIA California Council: Maybeck Award

Architect- The Architect 50: Ranked #23 in Design

2014- Architect- The Architect 50: Ranked #8 in Design, #10 Overall in the Nation

2013 - Architect- The Architect 50:Ranked #29 Overall in the Nation

San Francisco Business Times: Top 50 Bay Area Architecture Firms

2012- AIA California Council: 2012 Firm Award

Architect- The Architect 50: Ranked #16 in Design, #19 Overall in the Nation