The only project in the third studio of the sequence, the classroom is a look at design in terms of materials and construction. In this case, the sloping hillside, light-frame-and-fabric roof, and solid stone supports come together to form an exoskeleton for he non-loadbearing classroom walls. Particular attention was paid to the relationship between the varying materials, especially at joints where very different materials such as stone and steel meet.
In terms of design, a skewed grid forms the underlying order for the placement of the buttresses, walls, and desks. The external structure supports a tent-like canopy that leaps over the hillside site to shelter the classroom walls and provide an exterior covered space for students to interact. The heavy stone buttresse ease the building into the site which is surrounded by predominantly historic Gothic buildings.
Critic
Ted Cavanaugh
Date
Fall 1997
