Walter Gropius once asked, "How can we expect our students to become bold and fearless in thought and action if we encase them in sentimental shrines feigning a culture which has long since disappeared?" In our opinion we cannot. Students should be encased in shrines that truly depicted a lost culture rather than mimic along with creating a bridge to the future. The city of Sudbury has decided to create this bridge by revitalizing, diversifying, and improving the core downtown area, with the heart of this movement being a School of Architecture.
This proposed concept chose to emphasize the educational Iink between the existing suburban university sites along with creating a technological masterpiece for the city. In order to maintain these core ideas, a site that is in the heart of downtown was chosen. Located directly at the intersection of Elm Street and Durham Street, the site displays the correct demographics to support a school atmosphere with the public amenities like the bus station, farmer's market place, and abundant dining and retail outlets. It is also near the Sudbury Chamber of Commerce, allowing the school to attract tourist in town. The site requires some demolition in order to revitalize the area. With that in mind, the school would become an art piece within the city; one that will invite and encourage others to come explore its architectural creativity.
This solution is derived from a conceptual sketch diagramming the relationship between the various universities in the region. The sketch portrays that there is an direct relationship between those sites and the site chosen. There was also an indication of a bridge connection, therefore the idea of incorporating a spanning structure flourished into the relationship between architecture and culture. The bridge was angled indirectly to connect the main structures which symbolize the two parallel aspects of an architectural school: education and social interaction. Main educational functions are contained in the square Iike form. Studios are given prominence by facing them directly towards the street allowing students and citizens of Sudbury to interact. Copper operable panels are attached to the glazing allowing flexibility of light as the climate changes. The architectural library becomes the heart of the school and can be seen directly on the west façade and through its protrusion beyond the roof. It is accessible from every studio space emphasizing the importance of research within architecture with the main library programming residing on the fourth floor. Public functions such as retail, office and conference spaces are served by the long rectangular form. The bridge which connects these two forms starts its journey from the library core and concludes at a public auditorium while overlooking a public plaza which also functions as an open auditorium and gallery space.
(Competitor's text)
19 scanned / 12 viewable
- Elevation
- Elevation
- Presentation Panel
- Presentation Panel
- Presentation Panel
- Presentation Panel
- Axonometric Drawing
- Conceptual Sketch
- Perspective
- Perspective
- Perspective
- Plan
