Laval School of Architecture Addition
The major design concepts:
History of the city: I sought to ground the new addition in a web of “historical axes” which form and organize the program. The plan and twisting of the program boxes is based on a series of significant lines of force from maps of old Quebec, one from 1685 and one from 1700.
The tower: located on the Old Seminary of Quebec, this high point upon the ramparts can be seen from across the city. The new addition will contrast and associate to the two towers that already sit upon the hill, the Notre Dame de Quebec and the existing Seminary if Quebec. It will act as a new symbolic icon for the school from afar, and also liberates the existing courtyard to be used.
History of Campus: “Laval” composed by Wilfrid Beaudry was dedicated to the students at Laval University and the University of Montreal, and looks to the schools beginnings. It was highly regular beat and rhythmic condition, correlating to the repetitive nature of the existing schools façade. The exterior superstructure thus has a systematic repetitive rhythm taken directly from the musical notation.
The program is staked, starting with the auditorium underground, the multipurpose space floating above the ground, and the studio pin up spaces soaring above. The dean's office will sit on the top story, overlooking the campus and the city. It connects back the existing building by different ramps, on from each level to the new addition. A desire for column-free programmatic spaces led to create a perimeter steel superstructure partially containing main program boxes, and fully containing the staircase, elevator and mechanical room. This structural lattice allows the galleries to float freely, suspended like bridges, unimpeded by a typical grid structure. The lattice allows light to flood the tower in unexpected and dramatic ways, heightening the visitor's perception of the studio work and the city of Quebec. This structural system also creates an interesting intermediate space between the building's glazing and the structure, and provides a surface to incorporate vertical gardens and greenery. The transparent nature of the lattice also reveals the existing building behind to not only provide a sharp contrast to its classical composition, but the exposes the campus history while also embracing the future.
(competitor's text)
16 scanned / 14 viewable
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- Presentation Panel Excerpt
