EDUCATION 089
clay models which are used for fine-tuning their contours, onto all levels of the building. Previously, those hands-on modeling and mechanical activities would be sited on the ground floor. But by accommodating cars on all floors, they have achieved something that benefits all inhabitants, in the wide and flowing avenues and terraces on every level, which are turned into an enjoyable part of the journey through the building thanks to sweeping vistas at every opportunity onto the campus through ample glazing and outdoor space.
Te resulting civic and generous qualities of this building have given rise to other, less obvious programming for a manufacturing and research hub: the gleaming, white foyer has been used for banquets already, the height and warmth of that timber roof and the way the staircases and landings fold and recede, like gentle ski slopes, creating a rare aspirational setting for socialising. If there are clear collaborative benefits for less likely disciplinary bedfellows with this new, porous education typology, the same is possibly even more true for more topically
aligned subjects. Tat certainly seems to be the case with FCB’s new Warwick University Faculty of Arts, where a number of arts and humanities subjects that had been scattered across this sprawling midlands campus are now co-habiting in one gleaming, ceramic- tiled tower (see case study).
Where NAIC is the biggest building on campus, FCB’s new arts faculty is now the tallest. Together, they make visible two of the university’s core assets: automotive engineering and the arts. With the arts building, FCB Partner Andy Teobald says,
Clockwise The large staircase is designed to faciliate social interaction among the students. A deep terracotta facade was chosen to compliment Warwickshire clay. The communal spaces are intended to facilitate socialising as well as face-to-face learning
The unusual structure was apparently inspired by Basque sculptor Eduardo Chillida, says Theobald: ‘We have three rectilinear clusters and one twisted. That one twist really started to make the interior more dynamic. The geometries had to be resolved around it. We felt that complexity was going to be a real addition to the interior.’ The gaps between the pavilions create slots through which mature trees and surrounding landscaping are framed, and windows (many of them openable), where possible, are oriented into the leaf canopy. There are open, west facing roof terraces on levels three and five. The pleasure of being in these spaces is intended to ensure that students fully enjoy the opportunity to gather and converse in real life, after the restrictions of the last three years.
While the building was devised before current environmental
performance ambitions, a low carbon cement substitute was used in the concrete frame, saving an estimated 264.8 tonnes of carbon. Its foundations comprise recycled concrete from the previous car park. It features smart internal climate control technology, and achieves a BREEAM Excellent rating.
Client University of Warwick
Architects Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios Area 15,000m2 Cost £57.5m Completion Spring 2022 Engineers Buro Happold Construction Bowmer & Kirkland Landscaping Bowmer & Kirkland
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