Unlimited Peripheral Vision

Fuller Theological Seminary David Allan Hubbard Library,
Pasadena, California

As the world’s largest interdenominational seminary, Fuller Theological Seminary is known for leading evangelical thought with a mission grounded in scholarship. Given this strong intellectual tradition, the campus library is a critical resource and facility.

The building is designed to be a place that demystifies the concept of the library and honors the memory of David Allan Hubbard, theological scholar and past president of Fuller. Hubbard is described as a man of “unlimited peripheral vision,” a compelling idea woven into the design in several ways, most demonstrably through window placement and transparency that give the building its copiously daylit interior. The library design is conceived around the notion of hands open to offer and receive, conveying a sense of welcome and caring. The renovation and expansion allows the seminary to more than double its holdings, increase programming, and offer much-needed study space and advanced technological capabilities. This “legacy building” emphasizes flexibility and durability, extending the life of all materials.