BIG Unveils All-Wood University Building Without Fasteners In Its Structure
By Mikelle Leow, 23 Apr 2024
Render by Kilograph, courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group and featured with permission
The University of Kansas School of Architecture & Design (KU School of Arch & Design) is walking the talk with a significant transformation in the form of the Makers’ KUbe, designed in collaboration with prolific architectural firm Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) and BNIM, the executive architect. This new building is a six-story, 50,000-square-foot mass timber structure designed to serve as both a learning environment and an upstanding example of sustainable practices.
The KUbe’s most striking feature is its sustainable construction. The diagrid frame, built entirely from wood, utilizes a design that minimizes concrete use and incorporates innovative Japanese joinery techniques. This approach reduces the building’s environmental impact throughout its lifecycle.
Render courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group and featured with permission
The structure features “columns and beams that run diagonally, without steel plates or fasteners,” says BIG.
Render courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group and featured with permission
Notably, the creation of KUbe was informed by feedback from over 1,300 students, faculty, and board members, reflecting a commitment to user-centric design.
Render by Kilograph, courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group and featured with permission
The exterior façade is a unique blend of transparent and opaque glass, allowing for ample natural light to permeate the interior spaces of the massive structure while showcasing the creative energy within. Overall, the building embraces a minimalist aesthetic, with exposed mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems further emphasizing its focus on transparency and functionality.
Internally, the KUbe prioritizes collaboration. The open-plan layout features a central core surrounded by light-filled studios, 3D printing and robotics labs, and a café on the ground floor. This arrangement fosters interaction and exchange of ideas among students and faculty within the spacious 50,000-square-foot footprint.
The project also reveres the school’s history. The historic Marvin Hall will be preserved, while Chalmers Hall will undergo renovations to improve natural light access. Winter garden bridges connect the KUbe to these existing buildings, facilitating seamless movement and interaction between the new and the established.
Sustainability remains a core principle throughout the KUbe’s design. The structure includes a rooftop equipped with solar panels for energy generation, a rainwater harvesting system for on-site irrigation, and the use of recyclable materials throughout its construction.
Render courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group and featured with permission
The Makers’ KUbe stands as a symbol of innovation, environmental responsibility, and the future of design education. This space provides students with an inspiring environment to learn, create, and collaborate, reflecting the evolving landscape of the design field.
“Our design for the consolidated design studios at KU seeks to deploy all aspects of the profession in three distinct interventions: preservation, adaptation and new construction. The Makers' KUbe is conceived as a showcase in timber tectonics, traditional joinery, robotic manufacturing and sustainable materials,” explains BIG founder and creative director Bjarke Ingels.
Render courtesy of Bjarke Ingels Group and featured with permission
“The timber bones of the building are exposed by stripping away all applied finishes—elevating structure to expression. A single staircase doubling as convenience stairs above and fire stairs within ties all student spaces together from park to attic. The building serves as a living curriculum, revealing all function, technology and structure as tangible elements for the students to appreciate and critique—learning solidified into built form,” Ingels continues.
The design “preserves the school’s heritage buildings while keeping them relevant for the 21st century, extends the life and livability of the existing buildings with minimal intervention, and builds a new structure with low-carbon solutions,” BIG partner Thomas Christoffersen reveals. “These programs not only showcase the next chapter of our profession, but they will also inspire the designers of tomorrow to envision a sustainable future.”
[via Bjarke Ingels Group, images courtesy and featured with permission]