architecturered @ bsa
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PLACES FOR PEOPLE
architectureRED
A pair of buildings completed for a University south of Chennai offers adistinctive sense of place and a renewed sense of identity to an old institution.Setting the new buildings within the existing fabric, the design approachdevelops from the notion of a vertical campus – taller blocks that anchor thedisparate aspects through a common ‘new datum’
Text Suprio BhattacharjeePhotos architectureRED
The bell rings. The more or less empty seven-storey high void transforms before my eyes.
Sound levels peak sharply – echoes of voicesand busy chatter as students pour out of their
classrooms. The corridor transforms. Whatseemed like whimsical angled projections along
the inner perimeter of this vast courtyardbecome thriving pockets of student flow eddies.
They sit around the benches that nestlewithin these alcoves. Those seated, wanting
to look at the sky lean back onto the railingand rest their heads for a clear view. Blue
or grey, the sky is never obscured here. Onthe other side from where I stand, across the
courtyard from the staircase foyer where I’vepositioned myself, students find personal space
between bands of vertical fins that envelopone side of the courtyard. There the setting
is more intimate and contained. Like privatebalconies staring into this space. Visible
through a void below along the steel staircase,the inner amphitheatre quickly fills up with
students – a space that offers an opportunityfor film projections and lectures when needed.
Here, from where I stand, the courtyard andthe pockets of openness it expands into is a
vast theatre of activity. And not the theatre ofdecanting that most courtyards end up being –
spaces of transition and passage – but rathera space of activity outside the classrooms.
We’re still inside the building, I remember. The verandas lining the periphery of the courtyard
remain alive with students and facultymembers who find place in those alcoves. They
become attractors, drawing others to them. My
companion and guide for the day’s visit, BijuKuriakose – one half of architectureRED, thepractice that designed this place – has spent
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This spread: Departmentof Life Sciences,BS Abdur RahmanUniversity, Chennai.The new building is a vertical re-imaginationof the existing campus
framework. It retains thepedestrian relationshipon the ground level,while also creating spaces for socialactivities, movement,and interaction thatare considered to be synonymous with campuslife. The staccato rhythmof the window designis both aesthetic andfunctional, definingthe facade as well aspermitting sufficient lightand ventilation into the spaces within
the past few minutes scurrying about with
his iPhone, frantically clicking pictures of thistransforming inner realm. It’ll come in useful
for future presentations, he surmises, proofthat what was conceived on the drawing board
is actually working.Earlier in the day I visit architectureRED’s
offices in Adyar, in a quaint two-storeybungalow set along a tree-lined street with low
buildings. It seems like a fantastic setting topractice Architecture from, within the bustling
city. It’s early in the day, but the staff hasbeen putting in extra hours working towards
a deadline. I can see a model of a new housingproject taking shape, amongst other models
lying around. This is an office that believes inthe work of the hand. “We do lots of models,”
Biju explains, as he takes me around. We leavefor the University where the practice has been
developing a series of new interventions withina previous campus landscape of older disjoined
buildings. Along the route, I’m appraised of
the approach the practice decided to take –not seeing the new buildings as objects butrather as set within the fabric of a campus – as
such the opportunity for doing a set of new
facilities with a higher permissible buildingarea meant that the practice had to resort
to the notion of a ‘vertical campus’ - tallerblocks that anchor the disparate aspects
through a common ‘new datum’. An hour long drive later, we are at the BS
Abdur Rahman University. The campus isorganised along the classical idea of an axial
academic spine that leads to a clock tower.This clock tower becomes a fulcrum, with the
intersection of a perpendicular spinal route.These spines are vehicular now, and their
disposition along with their interface with theadjacent buildings means that there’s really
very little of the ‘campus street’ here. Theseedges are as lifeless as a typical suburban
street – a pity in a campus where buildingsbarely crept over 4 storeys in height.
When they were approached with thecommission, the practice wasn’t asked to
redefine the campus. That has been an
incidental outcome. An initial contract todesign one of the buildings slowly led to others,and the practice saw themselves faced with
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the enviable task of having to restructurethe future campus (even though they were
not explicitly asked to). Three new academicbuildings (one each for Aeronautics, the Life
Sciences and Architecture), a Student ActivityCentre (Canteen, Shared Campus Facilities)
as well as a set of buildings for new facultyhousing and student dorms – this was an
enviable task to add a new layer that, whilstdefining the renewed sense of an old and
respected campus, also needed to work withthe constraints of what the old matrix had
to offer. As such, the possibility of an initialmasterplan was replaced by a method where
the practice was “building the masterplan”along the way as newer commissions kept
adding up. The opportunity to create distinctplaces thus became the cornerstone of the
project’s conception.From the clock tower, the white glazed face
of the Department of Aeronautics becomes visible, raised loftily on what appears to be
a set of beefed up chevron columns over amound. The large vitrine of the glazed end was
meant to focus the internal spaces onto an oldBanyan tree (now barely a shade of its former
grand self) remarks Biju, which ironically wastrimmed by the University administration -
because their spanking new building wasn’t visible from the street! It is a poignant moment
in an otherwise joyous atmosphere that thebuilding engenders. Stepped green terraces
cascade upward to the raised public plinth – anemphatic artificial landform on an otherwise
featureless ground surface. The street is drawnin vehemently, while the building hovering
above embraces this piece of the city thathas stationed itself on this southern edge of
the campus.The view from the street into the raised public
plinth offers a glimpse into the seven-storey void mentioned earlier. The beefy chevron
columns offer a create a sandwich of open,freely-accessible public space, above which are
This spread: Departmentof Life Sciences, BS Abdur Rahman University,Chennai. Above andopposite page top left andbelow left: the stairs windabout the buildings cornerperimeter in a series ofelongated landings and switchbacks that add spatial drama and intrigueto the experience of thebuilding. Below: insidethe building, stairs fulfiltheir basic ‘utilitarian’ roleallowing for quick access
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the classrooms, lecture rooms and instructionspaces, while below this, a light-well offers
a glimpse into the double-height workshopspaces that form the base of the building,
sheathed by its landform-like exterior. Thepractice, I am informed, believes in constantly
negotiating between the figure and the ground.This is apparent here, as the ground is formed
into a terrain that invades the building’s heartand makes it its own. Standing inside, I am
overwhelmed as I look back onto the terracedforecourt and the campus streets beyond.
Students have already made this into a placeof exchange, as they occupy this bowl shaped
landscape for leisure and learning. The raisedplinth offers a vantage view of the campus, not
unlike the experience of viewing the greatestcities or the greatest of gardens from a mid-
level after climbing up a grand flight of steps.The tripartite arrangement of the section
(workshops-public realm-classrooms) carriesitself into the volumetric disposition of the
building. This is clear from the street and theaforementioned forecourt – with the northern
glazed block raised off the mound as mentionedearlier, a taller and more solid southern volume
with narrower windows clad in what appearsfrom a distance as a featureless skin of brick,
with a lower block with banded floor revealssandwiched in between. A mock-up for the
window brise-soleil sits strategically on thissandwiched block – Biju hopes for this part
of the work to be completed soon, so that thewest facing classrooms won’t get the harsh
afternoon sun. The northern block has a denserepetitive vertical banding that envelopes
all sides of the building – reading much “likethe diagram” as Biju explains – as such it
becomes apparent that the practice conceivesof its buildings as constructed programmatic,
spatial and volumetric diagrams that areembedded within a larger setting – and as
such are meant to read less than standaloneobjects. This attempt is obvious in the way in
This page: the baseof the Life Sciencesbuilding is raiseda few steps off the street, accessedthrough a subtlegroundscape definedby paths and ramps
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This page: processdrawings showingdesign development ofthe Department of LifeSciences building
ELEVATION 1 ELEVATION 2
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which the Aeronautics building melds with thegroundscape (the nature of its section arises
out of the need for double height workshopspaces directly accessible from the ground for
heavy equipment – flying machines for one –while at the same time negating the otherwise
impenetrable nature of what this would becomeas the base of a building), and the staggered
roofline that minimises the appearance of asingular mass. Both the nature of the Figure
and the Ground it sits upon are called in to
question. The Building itself is a porous figure– there is never a moment where one is notconnected to the sky or the breeze – and the
view of the treetops. Traversing the building isa rewarding enmeshed experience.
Our next stop is the new building for the Schoolof Life Sciences. This is a smaller building,
a rectangular footprint that is extruded toaccommodate the maximum permissible
building volume. The plinth dimensions, I’minformed by Biju, continues the staggered
nature of the adjacent building volumes thisforms an extension of – as such the Figure-
Ground relationship of this block is maintained,although the vertical dimension has changed.But this is no ordinary matchbox of course.
I am excited by the distinctive perimeter ofsolids and voids, the staccato rhythm of the
windows, and the staircase that wraps aroundportions of the building. This building is as
clear a manifestation of a diagram as one canget – raw and unforgiving in its stoic nature.
This is not an object of prettiness – but ithints at a pragmatic pared down simplicity
that I’m eager to explore. In that sense, the Aeronautics building seemed to be consciously
crafted and choreographed – materially andspatially. There are those conscious tectonic
and drama-inducing moments – an industrialsteel staircase, an exposed concrete lift shaft,
white rendered walls, colours used strategically,window openings that perform unique
functions, stone flooring laid in consciouslyinteresting patterns, banded stone and grass
in the forecourt, the featureless brick volumebulging precariously above – all adding up to
an overlapping experience of vistas.The base of the Life Sciences building is raised
a few steps off the street, accessed througha subtle groundscape defined by paths and
ramps. The adjacent canteen block adds life towhat is the ‘front’ of the building – although
this will change once the new Student ActivityCentre is built on the other side of the building.
One enters into a spacious foyer – where thenarrow dimension of the building becomes
apparent. From here one makes a choice – thelift, an internal stair, or the exterior stair
– with a more-or-less standard floor-platearrangement of spaces in enfilade. An outcome
of the necessity of two staircases as per fireregulations, this becomes the architecture’s
master stroke – with one performing a‘utilitarian’ role allowing for quick access, while
the other performs the more poetic role of the‘promenade de architecturale’ – winding about
the buildings corner perimeter in a series ofelongated landings and switchbacks that adds
spatial drama and intrigue to the experience ofthe building. The two stairs also offer access to
the adjacent building’s terrace – the practicehopes that in the future the roof terrace
becomes a hub of student activity – with greenspaces and recreation activities, extending the
‘campus ground’ up into the new building and
out onto the roofscape of the previous staggered volumes. While this may not be realisedimmediately, what this has done is given the
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This spread: Departmentof Aeronautics, BS AbdurRahman University,Chennai. By capitalisingon the existing lushgreen campus and thefragmented existingbuilt environment, thedesign reflects the needto define the space forinteraction in relation toits immediate context
by which a seamlesstransition within thecampus celebrates ahomogeneous spatialculture through engagingevery built structure to a vibrant public space
building its distinct sectional profile - theupper building volume shifting subtly as a
nod to the roof level of the adjacent block. And what it has also done is to create this
dramatic corner on the building’s South Eastaspect where the innards open up to the
distant landscape.Even though the practice was not really
aiming for the poetic or the deeply immersive,the experience of climbing that semi-exterior
staircase where one is constantly thrown inand out of the built envelope is a rewarding
experience that brings to the fore the binaryof the inside and the outside starkly by
providing a pared down middle ground thatbecomes a space for pause and quiet. The
breeze whips us constantly on this Aprilmorning, and the views across the forest the
University sits along are breath-taking tosay the least. The hills in the distance are
visible over the datum of the tree-tops fromthis strategic aerie, and the building’s stance
puts forth the eternal opposition of nature vs
artifice back into focus – though here, thereseems to have been no conflict.
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This page: processdrawings showing theincremental developmentof the Departmentof Aeronautics’design. Oppositepage: Department of Aeronautics, BS AbdurRahman University,Chennai. View from withthe central plaza.The design capitalisesa strong figure-groundrelationship by orienting
balconies with distinctedges that overlook thedramatic response tothe plaza
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FROM THE ARCHITECT’S PROJECT
DESCRIPTION
Department of Life Sciences, BS AbdurRahman University, Chennai, India
This building, completed in 2014, is among the
first few additions in the rapidly expanding BS Abdur Rahman University Campus initially
established in 1984 and spread across 61 acresat Vandalur, in Chennai.With its growing needs compelling a vertical
re-imagination of the existing framework ofthe campus, retaining its strong pedestrian
relationship when moving from the ground-up by creating spaces of interest and activity
in between, was critical to the approach to
planning, right from the beginning. Every
building on the campus with its clear set ofunderlying goals and governing principles,
contributes to the vision for the campus, in anincremental way: seeking to diffuse the strong
thresholds and forge an active relationshipbetween the buildings, spaces and streets, over
a period of time.While creating major public zones, the
buildings subtly transform their groundplanes to anchor campus activities, thereby
establishing links with the streets that feedthem – creating nodes, re-defining vital
axes and emphasising points of focus. The
architecture strives to allow this character toflow vertically into the buildings for spaces ofengagement to thrive.
The Department of Life Sciences, at the
campus level, was planned to be an extensionof the four existing buildings it neighbours and
lead into the outdoor canteen abutting it.It plugs into the corner site as a tall tower, in
contrast to the low-lying blocks adjacent, tocreate a bold anchor point at the end of
the axis.The previously unused rooftops of the
neighbouring blocks are activated through thisbuilding, by zoning public spaces at that level,
spatially linking them through programme,and physically through a bridge that
continues as a green roof, inviting informal
public activity. At the ground plane, the space around isarticulated to serve both as an entryway as
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SECTION AA
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ELEVATION 2
Department of Aeronautics,
BS Abdur Rahman
University
Project TypeInstitutional
Location Vandalur, Chennai, India
ClientBS Abdur Rahman
University
Project StatusCompleted, 2015
Built-up Area1,50,000 sqft
Client Team V N A Jalal, M S Jagan,
Shuja Ahmed, Jamal J
Structural EngineersSomadev Nagesh
ConsultantsMEP Consultants
Sumanam Engineering
PhotographsRajan Gero, Ram
Annamalai, Ramanathan R
Project Design TeamBiju Kuriakose, Kishore Panikkar, Apoorva
Madhusudan, Kani Pandian,
Sowmya Sudarsanam,Kiruthika Balasubramanian,
Yasir Azami, Vigneshwar VS
1 Plaza2 Landscape Court3 Toilet
4 Elevator Shaft5 Faculty Room6 Avionics Lab7 Simulation Lab8 Lecture Hall
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well as an extension of activity, which stretchesacross the courtyards in the middle as a
thoroughfare for movement.This spatial acknowledgement of movement
and interaction, both synonymous with campuslife, at the ground plane as well as an elevated
level, is what defined the course for formdevelopment of the building.
Given the constraints of the site, and theintentions for the space, the building wasenvisioned as a pure extrusion of a rectangle,
with the spaces free to express themselves onthe form.
The structural system is true to its visualappearance: an internal ‘grey’ volume held
together by the structural grid, wrapped by acantilevering envelope that forms the facade.
Located along a street, the perforations on this
façade coupled with the exposed circulation pathsthat boldly swathe it, help break the massive
volume down to a more human scale.The random play of the strip-like windows allows
the built envelope to continue to be perceived asan opaque mass, while permitting sufficient light
and ventilation to the spaces within. A blank wall looks onto the street imparting
a sculptural quality to the building, and astrong edge to the street axis, while also
being a compelling visual anchor. All in all, the form of the building is a
culmination of both: the decisions atbuilding level, based on the opportunities
and constraints available, and the major
vision for the campus: with each decision atbuilding level representing the parts thatreinforce the whole.
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Department of Aeronautics, BS Abdur
Rahman University, Chennai, India
BSA University in Chennai imparts character
and enhances programmatic distribution to thediverse designs.
Department of Aeronautics is emplaced withinan endowed context of a university campus,
intended to achieve balance between thebuilding and space. By capitalising on the
existing lush green campus and the fragmented
existing built environment, the design reflectsthe need to define the space for interactionin relation to its immediate context by which
a seamless transition within the campuscelebrates a homogeneous spatial culture
through engaging every built structure to a vibrant public space.
The constant dialogue between the solid andthe void enhances the journey through the
campus and embraces the spatial integrity.The design focuses on active campus nodes
that pivot interaction spaces. The buildingsalong the cardinal axis and the campus
street embrace a direct physical and a visualrelationship with the streets which in turn
becomes an extension of this homogeneous
spacial culture to create an interactive vertical network.The street abutting the site for the
aeronautical campus behaves as a physicallink between residential zones and lacks this
quality of engagement prevalent along theintersecting axes and has the potential to be
activated. The site terminates the existing
campus spine, which calls for the creation of anactive space and an interactive form to create
a rich visual landmark that accentuates thestreet, programmatically.
By responding to the need to create syncbetween the street edge and the building front,
the character of the spine is extended into andbeyond the aeronautical block. This requisite is
envisioned by gradually raising the land forminto a plaza by invigorating flexible interaction
spaces within and by visually anchoringthe foreground to the building masses. The
informality of the entrance plaza allows theusers to engage with the highly active axis of
the campus and incepts the strong image ofthe building in totality. The built mass oriented
along the central axis is floating above theextend spine to evocate the potential to create
a destination for the active campus network,and also edge the destination of the existing
street with a strong visual anchor. On the otherend of the site a vertical exposed brick mass
is deeply rooted to the ground plane to ensureits physical presence to be perceived from the
ground plane. Adding a central mass bridgingthe either edges of the building counter balance
the verticality and dilutes the massiveness ofthe exquisite form.The transition from the plaza toward a
horizontally spread entrance court imposingthe lightness of the space by allowing the
filtered light to wash the court, and ensuresa seamless entry toward the building. The
role of architecture to play with hierarchy
of spaces narrated in a rhythmic mannerensures to create an aura by exploding into a
monumental courtyard, capsuled between thebuilding masses. The courtyard weaves the
entire transition within the built mass across varies levels and establishes its integrity by
retaining the central focus and enhances the visual connectivity throughout the structure
to revolve around it. The design capitalises astrong figure-ground relationship by orienting
balconies with distinct edges that overlookthe dramatic response to the plaza and to the
abutting street.Defining the orientation of the building edge
is dictated by the necessitating orientationsfused with material contrasts create dynamic
spatial demarcations along the exteriors. Thediverse layers of materiality hold the masses
together and engage several planes within theheterogeneous section that are comprised in
the design framework.While the form express order and discipline
by defining its edges and framing the spaces,the sequential carved out informal spaces at
various levels trigger interaction and ensureflexibility and diversity in and around the
campus. The building as a node dilutes theboundaries between the building and the
space to create an engaging vertical networkand radically transforms the figure ground to
achieve balance within the campus.
This spread: Departmentof Aeronautics, BS AbdurRahman University,Chennai. Opposite pagetop and below left: the vertical exposed brick structure is deeply rootedto the ground planeto ensure its physicalpresence to be perceivedfrom the ground level.Opposite page belowright: filtered light entersthe interior spaces of thebuilding in abundance.This page: the designfocuses on activecampus nodes that pivotinteraction spaces
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