Michael Perez, left, and Jason Chong work on projects at the Art Center College of Design's south campus in Pasadena. (Gary Friedman, Los Angeles Times)

Brandon Mamone works on his science-fiction-themed paintings in a studio with a coveted feature: a window that lets in a lot of natural light. The Art Center College of Design student said he was lucky to get the space in the college's new building in Pasadena, close to restaurants, art supply stores and a Metro Gold Line station.

"It's nice to be around an urban environment," said Mamone, 23, a fine arts major from Sacramento.

He said he hopes the setting will encourage more people from the art world and the public to visit the student galleries than they do at the college's main, and more secluded, campus in the hills above the Rose Bowl.

"It's a lot more easily accessible," he said of the recently opened building, a former postal depot on South Raymond Avenue. "It feels much more connected."

His new work space is a result of the well-regarded design school's expansion into a former industrial and commercial zone next to the northern terminus of the 110 Freeway and the mainly dormant cooling towers of power plants. It is part of Art Center's plan to become a two-campus school in the same city....Continue Reading

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