This new campus takes a contextual approach, integrating
physically, culturally, and historically with Beirut’s urban tissue. Conceptually an urbanblock with sculpted voids, the building’s hollow spaces define six
autonomous blocks and construct multiple viewpoints across Beirut, connecting
students to their dynamic setting. The
voids also generate a street-level meeting space, which flows fluidly to the
top floor in the form of a massive staircase.
It concludes at a landscaped terrace overlooking the city. Light is a vital element in oriental
architecture and one that shapes its style and identity; the campus exposes
alternate light qualities through Moucharabieh-inspired perforations and a
polycarbonate volume. Such manipulation
presents a striking contrast in filtered light and luminescence. A stylized random-opening treatment is a
snapshot of the Lebanese War, lending a poetic glimpse into the reality of
destruction and violence.
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