Cain Center for the Arts in Cornelius, North Carolina was built with brick as both cladding and as an expansive entrance plaza and patio. Pine Hall Brick clay pavers are laid in an intricate pattern of sizes and colors that form an elliptical design that befits the town’s cultural gathering place.
Photo: Tom Kessler
Brick was instrumental in ensuring that Cain Center campus would look beautiful for generations to come. Its durability is unmatched, and the pavers allow the etching of donors’ names into the brick which was a critical part of the project’s fundraising success.
Cornelius, just north of Charlotte along Lake Norman, began as a single historically significant brick cotton mill south of Davidson in the late 19th century. Before the town was founded, Joseph Benjamin Cornelius answered the call to finance the construction of a mill to weave raw cotton into fabric, supporting a robust agricultural trade in the area. In 1893 the town was established and incorporated in 1905, getting its name from the mill’s principal stockholder, J.B. Cornelius.
Created by the firms C Design Inc. and Steinberg Hart, the project used 9,000 square feet of Pine Hall Brick English Edge Rose and English Edge Autumn with a blend of 4”x8”, 8”x8”, and 4”x12” sizes used in the elliptical shape.
Clay pavers spoke to the red brick building facades and sidewalks of the historic downtown.
The Cain Center footprint is 1.89 acres, including greenspace the clay paver plaza that offers patio seating. Photo: Tom Kessler.
Having opened in 2023, the design of Cain Center for the Arts is a nod to this history while it also celebrates a milestone in the growth and modernization of the prosperous community.
The clay pavers were an aesthetic choice for the design that allowed unique patterns in the ground with texture, depth, variation, and color. The elliptical paving pattern continues unbroken from the exterior plaza into the lobby and event space, blurring the boundaries between interior and exterior and emphasizing the community focus of the building.
“The design team was tasked with creating a destination and cultural catalyst for the Lake Norman region. Part of that vision was to empower visitors to engage with the arts in a vibrant facility,” said Sam Funari, Project Architect and Associate at C Design. “The hardscape design in the plaza extended the interior finishes to the common public space, serving as a warm welcome to explore what Cain Center for the Arts has to offer.”
Photo: Tom Kessler.
Draw Enterprises installed the job. Pavers were painstakingly laid out with very few cuts required to accomplish the difficult pattern.
General contractor for the Cain Center project was Edifice Construction. Pine Hall Brick worked with Edifice to engrave bricks used for fundraising and deliver them at the appropriate time for installation.
“We wanted to use a material in the outdoor public space that would show how invested Cain Center for the Arts was in their hometown of Cornelius, and reflect the materiality of this vibrant community,” said Funari. “Clay pavers spoke to the red brick building facades and sidewalks of the historic downtown.
“The intent was for the plaza to serve not only as a pre-function space for the theatergoers but also as an asset to the larger community. The elliptical form of the plaza, lined with low knee walls for sitting, is an inviting form and has already become a popular venue for various gatherings.”
The Cain Center plaza in daylight shows impressive paver patterns. Photos by Tim Buchman.