Biological Sciences Building

ARCHITECTSSaia Barbarese Topouzanov architectes, les architectes Tétreault Parent Languedoc et associés, Claude Cormier architectes paysagistes
LOCATIONMontréal, Canada
DATE2005
CLIENTUniversité du Québec à Montréal

DESCRIPTION

Team : Dino Barbarese, Patrick de Barros, Naomi Frangos, Céline Gaulin, David Griffin, Laurence Kerr, Jean-louis Léger, Pascal Lessard, Julie Marchand, Yvan Marion, Nadia Meratla, Marc Pape, Louis-Guillaume Paquet, Marianne Potvin, Steve Proulx, Mario Saia, Annie-Claude Sauvé, Maxime Simard, Yvon Théoret, Vladimir Topouzanov, Sam Yip

A complex site wrapped by both large-scale and residential projects, the Biological Sciences Pavilion volumetrically acknowledges its context while reinforcing a distinct sense of “campus”. As a component of the UQAM Science Complex, this state-of-the-art pavilion includes principally teaching and research facilities in addition to a research/business incubator component. Closing the perimeter of the campus, the mass of the building is counterbalanced by a core hollowed out to reveal a garden courtyard. This mass is further eroded volumetrically as the spiral of the building unwinds in relation to its context. A peripheral internal circulation unwinds in parallel with this erosion, animated by the garden as the building swallows the campus. The porosity of the building to both the city and the campus is further amplified by facades of rhythmic opacity, translucence and transparence. The Biological Sciences pavilion adopted green construction principles including: rehabilitating a vacant city lot by using recycled or low VOC (volatile organic compounds) materials, storing rainwater for toilets and gardening, the disposal of construction site waste, the selection of a reflective energy efficient roof, and heat recovery.