15
Vision’s Peter Hyatt spoke with McIldowie Architects
Director, Craig Brown about the role of design in shaping
more complete tertiary education:
“Glazed Cloister” with reference to the cloister of
Clarke and Behan Buildings on the college campus,
and it works extremely well.
VISION
Is it more difficult for architects to design a building
that’s quite multi-purpose as opposed to one with
a singular role?
Yes, this building has a multitude of uses, for example there’s
an auditorium capable of accommodating 300 students.
That plays a really key role in bringing the whole college
community and the resident college students into the one
place. It celebrates the fact that music and recital is very
special for Trinity. There are other specialist spaces as well.
The gallery is an incredibly strong statement by the college
about celebrating visual arts and its exceptional collection of
portraits, the ER White Collection and Sharwood Collection.
What do you hope the project says to people
who use the building, passersby and the world at large?
CRAIG BROWN The Trinity College Gateway Building is an
exceptionally strong statement. It forms this spiritual
and physical pathway from a college campus for its
1,700 international students each year. In their journey
towards the university. This building symbolizes that and
creates a connection between the college heart called
the ‘Bulpadock’ and the university heartland which is the
student union building.
There is a broad diversity of informal areas where
you have made the informal as important as the
formal learning areas.
It’s a building broken into smaller parts. Part of vertical
learning is about creating a sense of smaller spaces and
pods where students feel a personal contact and friendship,
or fellowship. The building has an eastern and west side,
with a very clear nodal point, defined by the main glazed
atrium that runs through the building. We’ve called it the