Paul L. Cejas School of Architecture Building
project by Bernard Tschumi Architects, New York/Paris - BEA International, Miami
photo by Miro Zagnoli
text by EOS
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

All the buildings look out onto a central courtyard that, as was intended by the architect, should favour relationships between students, and the latter and the faculty personnel. The open-air café, situated in the courtyard, and the rooftop terrace will surely contribute in reaching this objective.

The Project
The project takes place on a surface of around 9,500m, and comprises five buildings of various sizes, all interconnecting with bridges and pedestrian passageways. Apart from the lecture halls, the laboratories, the reading rooms and the administration offices, the complex contains multi-level technologically advanced studio with space for 375 students, an auditorium with a state-of-the-art audiovisual system and an exposition gallery.

All the buildings look out onto a central courtyard that, as was intended by the architect, should favour relationships between students, and the latter and the faculty personnel.
The open-air café, situated in the courtyard, and the rooftop terrace will surely contribute in reaching this objective.
According to the designers, the two more sober buildings made of pre-cast concrete tilt-up panels (containing the residential area and the offices), define a certain area and are activated by the ‘generators’. These would be the wings of the school, covered by very lively coloured ceramic tiles. To boot, the architects affirm their view that the red, orange and bright yellow surfaces of these structures compliment the surrounding landscape (with the intense blue of the sky, so typical of the region, and with the characteristic royal palm trees that grow all around).

The major challenge of this project was the need to balance the extremely low budget (about $400/m2) against the architectural ambitions set by the university. Most ductwork, conduits, sprinklers, and even acoustical baffles had to remain exposed to minimize costs. Although the main expense was the building’s enclosure, by combining structure and envelope in a single material - pre-cast concrete panels - the designers were not only able to meet the cost parameters, but succeeded in taking advantage of pre-cast technology in an original and innovative way.

The end result is unusual and unexpected (especially for a faculty of architecture), but it fulfils the designers’ and customer’s objective: to stimulate the imagination of passers-by and evoke the cultural melting pot that envelops the institute. And, we may add, it contributes to overcoming the stereotypical consideration of buildings such as schools and hospitals that are supposed to be severe, detached, cold, because of the seriousness of their purpose.

S_TILES: MARAZZI AND CERAMICA VOGUE
The pre-cast concrete panels, chosen by the Tschumi studio to contain building costs, are reversible and easily assembled thanks to double-T beams system, and can accommodate various different types of finishing.

The panels for the yellow and red ‘generators’ have been further sub-divided with a modular layout of 8" x 8" ceramic tiles, which are recessed into the panel to obtain a tightly sealed flush edge joint with the panel border. The tile joints, control joints, expansion joints, and panel joints are organized into a precise matrix that merges skin, structure, thermal seal, and colour to form one cohesive system offering multiple levels of resolution.

The ceramic products that have been used for the Cejas School of Architecture’s façades are single-fired tiles in yellow and red colour (Città series, Marazzi Group) and orange (Ceramica Vogue).

Concerning environmental policy initiatives, on January 2004, Marazzi Group obtained the European Ecolabel (the first one within the sector, together with Ceramiche Caesar), assigned to those products with the best rate quality/environmental impact. The eco-flower will label all the floor coverings produced at the Marazzi's factory in Fiorano, which has already been EMAS certified since 2000.

Design
Bernard Tschumi Architects, New York/Paris - BEA International, Miami

Location
Miami, USA

Destination of use
edu & culture

Client
Florida International University

Year of completion
2002-2003

Manufacturer
Gruppo Marazzi - Ceramica Vogue

Type of intervention
external restructuring

Ceramic Materials
Marazzi, Città series, 20 x 20 cm red and yellow single-fired tiles; Ceramica Vogue, single-fired tiles, Orange series