Educational: The Latest Architecture and News

In 2010, Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) held a design competition for a flexible solution to replace portable buildings across the district, and HMC Architects accepted the challenge. The district asked them to ignore their standards and put an emphasis on an ideas-based approach. They wanted creative, progressive responses to their problem, not dressed-up modular buildings. They challenged the traditional box shape of the classroom by looking at how the room is used and how it is currently under utilized. Although their design solution, which they named Flex, did not win the competition, their end product is a portable classroom solution that can be used at any school, with hope that their design can inspire other school districts to think differently when it comes to portable classrooms. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Open Paradox, MANIFESTO and ILKUN‘s proposal for the IT Convergence Center for KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology), aims to provide a truly multi-disciplinary research and educational environment for the institute. Located on the sloped East Campus Plaza of KAIST, the building allows free-flowing interaction between students and faculty of multiple academic disciplines as well as with the remaining school population and the public, fostering an atmosphere of creativity and openness.

This proposal received 3rd Prize at the Design Competition and was the recipient of a 2010 AIA NY Design Award.

+ 10

Architects: MANIFESTO Architecture P.C. (Design Architect) and ILKUN Architects & Engineers Ltd. (Local Architect) Location: Daejeon, Korea Consultants: Yoshinori Nito Engineering & Design P.C. Renderings: Courtesy of MANIFESTO. Design Team: Jeeyong An, Sang Hwa lee, Gi Young Park, JiYoon Oh, Sorae Yoo, Eunchung Na, Ulyong Moon, Sieun Lee (Manifesto) Ilin Hwang, Sung Jung Chough, Hyejin Choi, Hyunhee An, Byunghoon Kim, Yongik Won (Ilkun).

We are happy to share that our friends from New York-based Weiss Manfredi will be recognized at the 2011 AIA Honor Awards Ceremony in New Orleans this May. The firm’s Diana Center for Barnard College has infused the urban campus with a new sense of vitality as the vertically organized quad unites landscape and architecture with interior and exterior spaces. While the building contains 98,000 sqf of mixed use functions, the project also strongly emphasizes the constant connection between urban user and nature as a grand diagonal slash through the building creates a double-height glass atria to provide inward, as well as outward views. The slipped atria and an unfolded glazed staircase bring in natural light and eliminate visual boundaries between the College and the city, while providing spaces for informal interaction to encourage collaboration and dialogue across disciplines. The building has achieved a LEED Gold certification and Debora L. Spar, president of Barnard College explained, “The Diana Center has not only transformed the way our community interacts, but through its environmentally responsible design and function, has inspired us to become active participants in sustainability efforts. The project was also named a winner of ArchDaily’s Building of the Year Award for 2010 [be sure to view our full coverage of the Diana Center previously on AD].

Copenhagen-based We architecture recieved third prize in the competition for the extension of an existing high school in Falkonergården. More images and architect’s description after the break.

Today Ryerson University announced the design of a new Student Learning Centre for their Toronto campus. Designed by Snøhetta in collaboration with Zeidler Partnership Architects of Toronto, the 155,463sqf Student Learning Centre will feature a transparent glass skin that will provide varying light qualities within the interior spaces. Sustainable practices have also been incorporated into the design with 50% of the roof intended to act as a green roof and plans for the building to be LEED Silver compliant. Construction on the building is expected to begin late this year, with a targeted completion date of Winter 2014. More about the new Student Learning Centre including renderings following the break.