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international architecture competition | 07/2007

New Campus for Bezalel Academy in Jerusalem City Center

1. Preis

Studyo Architects

Architektur

studio grüngrau Landschaftsarchitektur GmbH

Landschaftsarchitektur

Erläuterungstext

BEZALEL UNIVERSITY CAMPUS – PHASE II
STUDYO ARCHITECTs* Cologne / DESIGN CONCEPT SUMMARY


Am I outside? Am I inside? How did I get outside again?
Imagine a series of yards and openings, slits and views in the surroundings. Imagine how sequences of openings disrupt the image of a large building, offering a light and airy atmosphere. These spaces render the possibility of parallel programming. They strengthen, encounter, and exchange, inside the building as well as within its urban context. Outside space is the main element of this project. It develops on several layers.

HISTORY
Historically, Bezalel was founded as a university for craftsmanship – craftsmen’s courtyards are an inspiration for the project. The climate in Israel allows spending a long duration of the year outdoors – if it is well protected from sun. The patios, none of which is oriented towards the south, provide this quality

URBAN CONTEXT
Surrounding the Cathedral, pathways from the city lead across the site and interknit with the Campus internal and external circulation on the main plaza. By opening this plaza in-between the buildings it merges into its surroundings and enlarges the city‘s offers for public activities, adding the input of Bezalel.
The composition of volumes features a prominent large volume in the south that develops beneath the plaza into the lower sloping part to the north. Providing a strong vis-à-vis for the municipal building and forming clear edges towards the streets, the volumes communicate between the higher building to the south and the lower and smaller ones to the north.
In between the upper and the lower plaza the building recedes generously in order to allow the view from the lower plaza to the church above as point of orientation.
Having to surround the Cathedral, the situation proposes diagonals as main paths across the plaza, passing sunken courtyards which allow glimpses into the building. The project benefits from this situation by offering a public balcony in this alignment, at the same time directing the view towards the historic centre of Jerusalem. Here, a spacious cascade of stairs communicates between the two different heights between \'The Holy Trinity Cathedral\' and the \'Museum of the Underground Resistance\'.

LANDSCAPE
The plaza surrounds the Cathedral in a clear rectangle. Coming from Jaffa Street, an alley of trees picks the visitor up from this direction and accompanies him towards the campus while at the same time providing a delicate separation between the grounds of the church and the new and lively campus area. Soon these trees start to scatter across the plaza, forming differentiated, shady areas. These move up the soft slope of the northern part of the building, reaching an olive grove at the top in front of the library, where students sit and read. Jet fountains in the centre of the plaza are spread loosely furnishing the plaza from where one can see the old city.
The landscape concept works with Mediterranean fruit trees. Each courtyard is furnished with one specific kind of tree. Fig, olive, carob and pomegranate offer a variety in colour and taste, and provide each courtyard with its own character.

ORGANIZATION
Each of the two main volumes has one main entrance that makes the visitor dive into the building mass and emerges into a courtyard cutting through the entire height of the building. They are bordered by the auditorium, canteen and sports facilities in one part, galleries, café and catwalk in the other. Each one a lively, shared area, protected from the city\'s noises.
They are connected by the main interior circulation spine, which moves on through the complete volume, passing yards left and right, offering views and orientation into the city.
The inner structure of the building corresponds with that of the Old City. The corridors, between departments function like streets, leading onto courtyards and past buildings. Also, there is no one main entrance. Bezalel Campus is an easily accessible volume – choose your entry.
All departments are gathered in the larger southern volume. The structure is a combination of tightly packed functions bordering generous open spaces. They provide ample natural daylight, natural ventilation and differentiated terraces for students and teachers.
The departments are arranged in a manner, which interprets the courtyard topic in an alternative way.
Several departments border onto one bigger lobby and share it, enhancing interdisciplinary exchange and communication. Departments with special requirements are organized on two storeys above of each other, combining spaces with equal height on the same floor. This, as well as the large light shafts and slits allow vistas between different departments.

CLIMATE
The specific dry and rather mild climate of the area is the starting point for several topics.
The HVAC concept uses the warmth of the sun to provide cooling to the building by using heat in absorption chillier. The proposed system then consists of a basic, ‘slow’ element, which keeps general moderate temperature throughout the entire building (concrete core cooling) and a dynamic element (air conditioning/adiabatic cooling or fan coils) which can be added when temperature peeks are reached in areas where necessary.

FAÇADE
The façade also takes these facts into account. The openings in the façade consist of a varying scheme of cloudy figures which are adapted according to orientation and the inner logic of the Campus Building.
Its cloudy, yet homogenous appearance consists of horizontal lamellae in a regular grid. Around windows this structure is interrupted, some lamellae are missing, the remaining provide protection from sun in the interior, while allowing large views towards the outside at the same time.


STRUCTURE
Main walls function as full storey beams that are stacked on top of each other crosswise and carry the floors. They leave giant gaps that form the patios and balconies.
Structure and space coincide.

SIGNAGE SYSTEM
A university filled with young people in creative courses is a breeding ground for ideas and innovation. The signage system should reflect this issue.
Colour coding each department offers an easy access to understand the Campus in its entire context as well as all specific spaces by using a nonverbal identification. All users of the building - be it students, the professors or visitors - will be able to find one‘s way just by following the colour to one‘s destination.
Flexible screens instead of static prints or signs offer great advantages and opportunities. Real time updating digital doorplates offer information on top of the identification of the room number. Multiple uses of languages without dividing the space for the typography by the use of blending and moving animations.
All digital signage elements can be operated by one central station and are linked via wireless technology.
In general the signage system is placed in the floor, hence is conceived as elements which accompany Bezalel users on the horizontal walking floor, rather than being on the vertical walls. Walls are free for the purpose of hanging walls when again another submission or presentation occurs.
People who already know their way will not be disturbed by signs, yet those who don’t simply run over them. The signs offer a support for those who need it.

INTERIOR
The internal communication space is of major importance to the project. All lobbies are situated within this space bordering onto courtyards. Critique rooms in this area are elaborated as furniture, windows bordering onto it have a wide and low windowsill one can sit on: a variety of possibilities is offered to turn the space ‘in between’ into a lively place for encounter.
Voids inside communicate between the departments - the inner world of a Campus turned inside out - whereas patios in the outside appear as verdant and protected rooms.

Beurteilung durch das Preisgericht

The Jury declared that the winners responded most effectively to the divided site and proposed a unified and cohesive campus which optimizes the qualities of the site and successfully integrates indoor and outdoor spaces. The design responded sensitively to the historical context and as such connects to the surrounding area, interpreting effectively the traditional Jerusalem elements of courts, gardens, roofscape
and screen facades. The design most successfully places facilities accessible to Bezalel and the public, and most effectively interprets the mission and vision of Bezalel.