Lawrence University Campus West is a mixed-use partnership between a Liberal Arts University and Conservatory, a private civic art museum, and market rate housing located on the western edge of campus in Appleton, Wisconsin. The Trout Museum of Art's "town and gown" gateway location and both institutions gain expanded opportunities for collaboration and community connection.

Frederick Fisher & Partners’ design reflects this ethos in two primary ways. The first supports the university’s interdisciplinary academic program by creating spaces for statistics and computer science, the humanities, and a music conservatory. The second fosters opportunities for impromptu meetings, mentorship, and community engagement by seamlessly yet securely incorporating passage from the street. On the east entrance, visitors walk through an exterior covered sculpture courtyard before entering the café-bar hybrid called the Drinkery, which is flooded with natural light during the day and lit vibrantly at night with pendant-shaped lamps. On the north-facing entrance, a covered outdoor classroom serves as a transition zone to interior learning spaces and the exhibition galleries while also providing a visual connection to the farmer’s market and city life outside. Flexible spaces throughout the design-build complex easily host visiting lecturers, workshops, and other public events.

FF&P also solved problems within tight spatial and budgetary parameters. The classrooms and dry labs meet complex acoustic and mechanical standards, balancing the need for a cohesive academic experience with specialized rooms for rehearsal, study, and research. Private office space for faculty on the second floor looks out on the bustling avenue to the north. The transparent north-facing glass wall of the museum gift shop provides a visual link between art and the outdoors, while The Drinkery overlooks the historic Lawrence quadrangle. Upstairs, residential life unfolds in 40 spacious apartments that offer views of the Fox River to the south, downtown Appleton to the west, and the gateway to Lawrence University to the east.

FF&P in collaboration with Boldt Technical Services and Boldt Construction provided steady, grounded leadership during the design-build process, rapidly and cost-effectively shepherding the project to completion. Working closely with a subconsultant, FF&P helped create a flawless metal skin system by selecting the largest possible panels that could be manufactured, gradually reducing the price per square foot without sacrificing aesthetics. The design creates a modern addition to the city's cultural landscape— two rectangular volumes stacked on top of each other blend the boundary between downtown and the edge of the Lawrence campus while providing a contemporary take on a covered porch. The use of pre-fabricated modular units for the top two residential floors saved considerable time, allowing for the construction of the 105,918 square foot complex in 10 months. From the initial exploratory design meetings with the clients to the ribbon-cutting ceremony, the building was finished in a year and a half.