Shaw Center for the Arts

Schwartz/Silver Architects of Boston wrapped 125,000 square feet in translucent channel glass manufactured by Glasfabrik Lamberts in Germany. The material does what glass isn't supposed to do — it diffuses light instead of framing it. The building opened in 2005 at 100 Lafayette Street, won the AIA Gulf States Honor Award that same year, and earned the National AIA Honor Award in 2008. Inside are the LSU Museum of Art, which holds the largest assemblage of Newcomb Pottery in the United States; the 325-seat Manship Theatre, used for concerts, theater, musicals, dance recitals, and film; the LSU School of Art Glassell Gallery; and classrooms. A rooftop terrace offers one of the best views of the State Capitol and the downtown skyline. The Shaw Group, the Manship families, the Pennington families, and Lamar Advertising — based in Baton Rouge — were major donors. Public funding covered the rest. The Shaw Center was part of the Third Street cultural corridor revival that reshaped downtown in the 2000s. It serves as the cultural hinge between the LSU campus and downtown. The museum hours vary; check the LSU Museum of Art schedule before you go.