Houston’s New Glassell School a Work of Concrete Art

July 17, 2018

Houston’s vibrant Museum District has an eye-catching new addition, and it’s made almost entirely of concrete!

The Glassell School of Art, which serves as the teaching institute of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, was built with custom concrete mixes supplied by CEMEX and placed by McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. Over a span of 2.5 years, more than 21,000 cubic yards of concrete were used to construct the 93,000-square-foot building, designed by Steven Holl Architects.

“This project really showcases what concrete can do, both as a structural component and as an architectural feature,” said Alexis Evans, market development manager for CEMEX USA’s Texas Region. “The service schedule was demanding and challenging, so it was very important that we delivered exactly what the customer was looking for, precisely when they needed it.”

The building’s design called for a multitude of specialty concrete mixes, and each pour was different. There were variant angles and depths, and the structure’s many exposed concrete beams and surfaces required near-perfect finishes. On top of that, there was the white concrete …

“When we originally budgeted for this project, we budgeted for all of the exterior concrete to be a standard grey mix. But as we moved into the construction phase, the design team wanted a white mix instead,” said Josh Davis, assistant superintendent with McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. “It was a challenge not only because of the last-minute alteration, but also because CEMEX’s plants weren’t set up for that particular mix.”

The solution? Each batch of white concrete was hand-mixed by CEMEX. To ensure consistency, CEMEX staffed a quality-control specialist on site for all of the white-concrete pours.

“This project was a challenge that CEMEX didn’t run from,” Davis said. “They embraced it and helped us make sure that the end product was going to be something that we were proud of, that the owner was proud of and that CEMEX was proud of as well.”

“The Glassell School is a beautiful addition to Houston’s Museum District and will be a focal point for the city for years to come,” said Joel Galassini, president of CEMEX USA’s Texas Region. “McCarthy does outstanding work, and we’re proud to have supplied them with the right materials to bring the architect’s vision to life.”

For more information on the Glassell School of Art, visit https://www.mfah.org/visit/glassell-studio-school/new-glassell-school-art/.

For more information on McCarthy Building Companies, visit https://www.mccarthy.com/.

CEMEX is a global building materials company that provides high-quality products and reliable service to customers and communities in more than 50 countries throughout the world. Its U.S. network includes 11 cement plants, more than 50 strategically located distribution terminals, 50 aggregate quarries and nearly 270 ready-mix concrete plants.