19
“Some architecture has
an uncanny knack of
appearing right at home
– as though it always
belonged. It’s some feat
to fit quite so effortlessly
into a copse of trees on
the university’s grassy
slopes without disturbing
the natural order.”
VISION
Were you surprised to learn that your temporary
building is now permanent?
Well, you can never account for the brief you’re going to
end up with, and originally, as you say, this was to be a
temporary structure, so it was designed to be assembled
and then potentially disassembled at some future stage
and reused in another location. However with the client
so delighted by the completed building, they wish to
keep it in its current location. So even if the current
occupants move on to another facility, other university
users will inhabit this building for a design life of 50 years
and hopefully even beyond that.
Rather than the random holes left over by the builder,
you show special regard for occupants with your
treatment of glazing.
We revelled with some joy where we could bring glass
together in a corner condition. It’s so unique to be able to
do that, and it really opens a building out to its landscape
where you can look in two directions, or more than one
direction through the same corner. It’s a really lovely
opportunity that glass gives you in this way.