Katzen Arts Center


The Cyrus and Myrtle Katzen Arts Center is home to all of the visual and performing arts programs at American University and the American University Museum It is located at Ward Circle, the intersection of Nebraska Avenue and Massachusetts Avenues in Washington, D.C. This space, designed to foster interdisciplinary collaboration in the arts, provides instructional, exhibition, and performance space for all the arts disciplines. Its art museum exhibits contemporary art from the nation's capital region and the world. The museum gallery is the Washington region’s largest university facility for art exhibition.
The Center houses many academic departments for the university, including Art History, Graphic Design, Studio Art, Arts Management, Dance, Music, and Theatre. The center also features a museum; a sculpture garden; a parking garage; of performing arts space; of studio space including theatre studios, a music ensemble room, art studios, and dance studios; an admissions welcome center; and the Abramson Family Recital Hall.
The construction of the Center was made possible by Dr. Cyrus and Mrs. Myrtle Katzen, who house much of their modern art collection within the building.

American University Museum

The American University Museum is a three-story, museum and sculpture garden located
within the university’s Katzen Arts Center. As the region’s largest university facility for exhibiting art, the museum’s permanent collection highlights the holdings of the Katzen and Watkins collection. Rotating exhibitions emphasize regional, national, and international contemporary art.
Much of Dr. Cyrus and Mrs. Myrtle Katzen's modern art collection is showcased in the museum, which includes over 300 pieces by artists such as Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, Willem de Kooning, and Roy Lichtenstein. The museum also includes art by Jean Dubuffet, Red Grooms, Amedeo Modigliani, Larry Rivers, Frank Stella and Andy Warhol.

Architecture

Upon completion, the Katzen Arts Center was immediately received as an architectural gem at American University, not only for its design but also for its purpose to encourage student innovation in media, concept, and approach by uniting facilities for creating, displaying, and performing art under one roof. Designed by EYP Architecture & Engineering, the Center is situated on a very long, narrow site abutting Ward Circle. Other architectural highlights include the piazza with a skylighted rotunda at the center of the facility.