Architects Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown were the first in their field to champion the values of the vernacular and the ordinary. Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates' designs have changed the direction of modern visual culture, shaping far more than the architectural fashion called "postmodernism," which, although often identified with them, bears only a marginal relationship with their practice. This retrospective, highlighting previously unseen sketches from Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates' work over the last thirty years, demonstrates the unparalleled influence of their ideas and architecture. Like the firm's built work, the designs are as colorful, witty, and exhilarating as they are brilliant. Organized by the Philadelphia Museum of Art, this traveling exhibition features many sketches from the 1996 re-design of MCASD's La Jolla facility.

The San Diego presentation of Out of the Ordinary is made possible, in part, by generous contributions from Sue K. and Dr. Charles C. Edwards, and Mason and Elizabeth Phelps, with additional funding from the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture, the California Arts Council, and the annual support of MCASD's members.

This exhibition was organized by the Philadelphia Museum of Art with the support the Philadelphia Exhibitions Initiative, a program funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts, and administered by The University of the Arts, Philadelphia. The section containing "The Architect's Dream" was funded by Elise Jaffe and Jeffrey Brown.