Moody Center at The University of Texas  | Austin, Texas | 2022

Architects: Gensler
Landscape Architects: OJB Landscape Architecture
General Contractor: AECOM Hunt
Clients: Oak View Group, Live Nation Entertainment/C3 Presents, The University of Texas, Matthew McConaughey
Owner's Representative: CAA Icon
Public Partner: University of Texas at Austin
Photographers: Chase Daniel; Ryan Conway, Ryan Gobuty
Videographers: Grant Gay, Ryan Conway

Moody Center at The University of Texas is the new home for men’s and women’s basketball and serves as a major entertainment venue for the Austin community.

The design improves the urban fabric of central Austin by establishing a new relationship between the arena and the city. While the Frank Erwin Center existed as a drum-shaped fortress with games and events hidden behind its looming concrete walls, Moody Center’s transparency and activity engage with the greater community.

On arrival at the main outdoor plaza, visitors see directly into the glazed atrium to the basketball court. The roof’s soffit is a vibrant wood-veneer canopy that cantilevers out over the plaza, turning downward in a sweeping curve to become the interior walls of the arena, creating a striking impression as a symbolic gesture to come on in.

The team created an equitable experience, regardless of the ticket price. Affordable seats are on the upper concourse and enjoy 360 views out to the city through an uninterrupted glass curtainwall.

The upper concourse accesses a shaded terrace with magnificent views of the State Capitol building and the downtown skyline. The bars and concessions are designed to provide a first-class experience.

The warm and textural material palette of the market-style concessions creates inviting beacons to explore along the concourses.
Moody Center is the first college venue to implement a Positive Displacement Ventilation (PDV) air distribution system within the seating bowl. Custom diffusers supply air through the risers of the lower bowl.

The efficiency of this innovative system helped achieve energy cost savings of 13.7%. The PDV system also reduces building drafts, vibration, and noise, and provides better overall air quality.