The first concern of this project is to provide a good atmosphere within which to study. The building is designed to offer a choice of study environments for postgraduate students: overlooking the River Cam, sitting outside on the balcony or steps, looking towards Silver Street, sitting around a large table, choosing to be isolated under the lantern, relaxing on a sofa, or working in the computer rooms.
The site, a long narrow rectangle, lies between the curve of Silver Street and the Cam mill pool. The college itself is linear in plan. Over time existing buildings were joined together by new connecting buildings. The site is therefore the linear end of a linear plan.
On the street side, the building is low and appears to emerge from the existing curved boundary wall. On the river side, there are two storeys of accommodation and within this section computer rooms are placed at ground level along the river front. The main reading room is a space that extends from ground floor to first floor and overlooks the water. This gives the opportunity to provide a variety of study spaces.
The interior of the building is like one large piece of furniture. Structure, cladding, windows, floors, bookcases and furniture are all made of oak. The timber has different characteristics varying form the dramatic texture of shakes and splits in the structure to the refinement of veneers in the furniture.
The dominant aspect of the interior space comes from the geometry of the roof. The straight line in the plan generated by the waterside and echoed by the clerestory is set against the curved wall to Silver Street. The inside of the curved wall is lined with books, while the rafters forming the door reconcile the straight line from the curve and generate a gentle three-dimensional curved plane when seen in perspective.
The oak structure uses sections of a size that were only available “green” (ie unseasoned). The timber was cut and dried for the project but moisture contents remain in the range of 25-60 percent and the structure will continue to dry for several years. The timber joints which transfer load use a system of stainless steel fixings to allow the joints to be tightened as the timber dries.