LAUSANNE – As the saying goes, there are two sides to every story. In this story, there are two sides to the building.
Dominique Perrault Architecture (DPA) completed the renovation and extension of the former library at the The École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland earlier this summer.
This construction – the BI Building – is the first to be completed in DPA’s urban development plan for the École. It is located in the centre of campus and houses human resources, financial services, the office of the Vice President of Planning and Logistics, as well as the post office. The majority of students, faculty and staff of the École will visit this building, or at least point someone in its direction.
The BI Building has brightly coloured panels on its façade, making it easily recognisable. Looking at the images for the master plan – which is due for completion in 2015 – it will be the only brightly-hued building in the new part of campus. The BI Building’s colourful façade casts it as an outward looking, attention-seeking, ‘extroverted’ building, which suits its function.
On the other hand, there are spaces in the BI Building which have a distinctly calmer appearance and ambience. An external volume in the BI Building is clad with glass and black screens and has a moodier disposition than the rest of the building. This volume meets the ground differently to the multi-coloured volume and seems to be more interactive and pedestrian friendly because the glass doors and screens are easily legible and can be opened or moved. From inside this openable terrace, perforated black screens allow outward views and create a transitional space, neither fully indoors nor fully outdoors. These terraces are designed to be fluid break out spaces that encourage people to interact.
Two other areas with calmer aspects are the BI Building’s courtyards. They retain the same geometric, vertical style of the colourful façade, but are completely de-saturated, using only white panels with black mullions. A muted colour palette along with timber decking and vegetation make the courtyards quiet, meditative places very different in character to the external façade.
In this way, the BI Building has two sides: one which is outward looking and extroverted and the other inward looking and reflective, echoing the different states of mind that a student goes through during the school day.
Photographs courtesy of Alain Herzog and DPA
