Audrey Irmas Pavilion. Image Courtesy of OMA
OMA will be breaking ground on their new design for Wilshire Boulevard Temple’s expansion next month. The groundbreaking for the new Audrey Irmas Pavilion is scheduled for November 11. The $75-million project was designed by OMA partners Shohei Shigematsu and Rem Koolhaas. The three-story expansion will include space for the temple congregation, surrounding neighborhood and supportive services.
Audrey Irmas Pavilion. Image Courtesy of OMA
The Temple’s Audrey Irmas Pavilion will include a main event space, a smaller multi-purpose room, and a sunken garden designed by LA-based Mia Lehrer. The expansion features a sloping facade that angles away from the historic 1929 temple building. The facade features a series of openings that filter light and will guide visitors through the complex. Replacing a surface parking lot at the corner of Wilshire and Harvard Boulevards, the design was formed to reach out onto Wilshire Boulevard to formally create a new presence. The pavilion will be capped with a landscaped outdoor deck by Studio MLA.
Audrey Irmas Pavilion. Image Courtesy of OMA
Having won a competition for the pavilion’s design in 2015, the OMA scheme represents the firm’s first commission from a religious institution and their first cultural building in California. Designed in collaboration with Gruen Associates, the project will interlock the main space, multi-purpose room and garden in a vertically stacked scheme to frame views. The Audrey Irmas Pavilion is scheduled for completion in 2020.
News via Urbanize LA