One of the oldest and most prestigious universities in the UK, Queen’s University in Belfast is a stalwart of British academia with over 150 years of scholarly excellence resting within its walls. Renowned for its storied past and stunning buildings, the institution is iconic in its own right and, after a recent transformation of the northern portion of the University’s historic main campus, is set to impress students, staff and visitors for years to come. The architectural work has been so well received that the venture recently won a Brick Development Award for Best Refurbishment Project.
TODD Architects took on the task of redeveloping the iconic campus in the summer of 2014, including: partial demolition, restructuring, refacing and extension, alongside refurbishment and linkage of an incongruous 1960s multi-storey library stack and teaching centre into a new home for the University’s highly respected School of Law, a Faculty hub facility, and a series of centrally bookable lecture theatres and teaching spaces.
To support the external facade of the building, the architects used Wienerberger’s Lincoln Red clay brick; a product that offers a striking aesthetic while bringing with it clay’s natural durability, efficiency, and longevity. Brick was a critical element in the façade design; the product chosen had to synergise the new structure with the University’s historic surroundings, in particular the Quad, where brick is the predominant building material.
Selecting the right brick presented a challenge for the architects, who discovered that five different types of brick had been used in the buildings surrounding the Quad. Selecting a modern product to sit alongside such historic variety was crucial. After testing a number of samples, the Wienerberger brick was chosen where the aesthetic was extended through to the interior of the student hub, with vertical panels providing colour and textural contrast with white plastered walls.
Richard Brown, Category Marketing Manager - Wall at Wienerberger, commented:
“Being involved in a project of this scale is both exciting and fulfilling for our Wall team. Queen’s University is such an icon in British culture and the striking buildings are part of the institution’s charm so for TODD Architects to select our product to continue that identifiable aesthetic it is a real honour and even better that the work and the product has been recognised by the board of the Brick Development Awards.”
For further information please visit http://www.wienerberger.co.uk/. Follow Wienerberger on Twitter at https://twitter.com/wienerbergeruk.
