Trinity College Dublin

[forrestreid]

I didn't know the Department of Finance Building on Merrion Row had pupped.

"pupped"?

Oh, the state of education today....

The word you are looking for, young man, is "whelped".


But other than that, quite an apt comment!

[Cathal Dunne]

I didn't know the Department of Finance Building on Merrion Row had pupped.

They look about the same size to me. Duplicated is a more accurate description.

[Smithfield Resi]

Is that for real?

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...................................,Dear God, make it stop!

[notjim]

ASCII art is no substitute for words.

There is lots to be said about this building, as noted above, it is a bit modish and really fails to effectively close the square, against that, it is crisp, and the window pattern plays amusingly with the strong convention which dominates the Parliament Square or whatever its called.

However, trying to deduce a standpoint from a piece of sprocket printer nostalgia is kind of fruitless.

[gunter]

view of the model of the 'Long Room Hub' over the roof of the old library.

Similarities - within an architectural tradition - are the norm, that's how 'traditions' used to work; one guy makes an advance, the next guy produces a refinement and on it goes in incremental steps, until a level of accomplishment is reached that satisfies on some deep aesthetic level and then, rather than regress, someone comes up with a new idea.

In that sense, the similarities between this 'Long Room Hub' block and the Dept. of Finance block on Merrion Row, could be a positive sign that Irish contemporary architecture is growing out of it's gawky adolescence, with pumping hormones and a short attention span, and becoming mature.

On the other hand, it could just be a total absence of new ideas.

Traditionally, the problem with Irish architecture is that; often the near-perfect work arrives early in the process and a 'ah feck it, we can't beat that' mindset seems to take over and kills the ambition to keep raising the bar.

Koralek's Berkley Library is one of those works. A little piece of refined English Brutalism imported into the centre of 1960s Dublin, as exquisite and as alien as Cormac's chapel, or the Casino at Marino.







The new 'Long Room Hub' building sets itself up to take on the 'Berkley' across a tiny square, with a similar well-defined hollowed-out mass, raised off the ground on similar jutting cantilevers. . . . . . The question is: . . . . When it's finished, will we see architectural progression, or architectural regression?


the 'Long Room Hub' squaring up to the 'Berkley' in the distance.

Interesting times ahead

[missarchi]

we can't beat missarchi... currently regression and special purpose vehicles with tank proof walls with 7 hurdles or fences...

[Global Citizen]

we can't beat missarchi... currently regression and special purpose vehicles with tank proof walls with 7 hurdles or fences...

?........

[Global Citizen]

Gunter's caption below the last image above "The long room hub' squaring up to the Berkley in the distance", sums up the image quite neatly. From that birds eye view the building sits quite comfortably with its neighbours without dominating them or being threatened by them. And while this model with the sun reflecting off the wall of the old library is never truly convincing, it does present a more favourable image than the humans eye view on the hoarding a few posts back.

[jdivision]

It's dreadful. As bad as the library.

[notjim]

Planning application for solar panels on New Square

http://bit.ly/TCD_solar

North Block comprising of House Nos. 33, 34, 35, 36, & 37, New Square, Trinity College, College Green, Dublin 2 PROTECTED STRUCTURE - Flat collector solar panels to the front roof

This is obviously trinityHAUS in action.

There is another interesting planning notice up, to convert Luce Hall into a student center, most significantly for people who aren't students, this will include in-fill between the box and Pearse Street to restore the street line; this isn't on the online planning lists yet.

[gunter]

There is another interesting planning notice up, to convert Luce Hall into a student center, most significantly for people who aren't students, this will include in-fill between the box and Pearse Street to restore the street line; this isn't on the online planning lists yet.

Step in the right direction there:)


The gap in the streetscape isn't huge, but you expect better from Trinity


Passed Luce Hall recently and it's not been wearing too well on the outside. Back in the 80s when it was built it was something of a landmark with it's Miesian expressed steel frame, but I don't remember it ever being particularly loved.

[notjim]

The Long Room Hub frame is in place, here it is from across Fellows' Sq.

[StephenC]

That was quick!

[notjim]

I guess the slow bit at the start is digging the big hole, but that couldn't do that in this case or they would have broken through to the Edmund Burke. It did go from shafts standing to frame up in about two weeks, it was quite impressive.

[Cathal Dunne]

I guess the slow bit at the start is digging the big hole, but that couldn't do that in this case or they would have broken through to the Edmund Burke. It did go from shafts standing to frame up in about two weeks, it was quite impressive.

It's smaller than I expected too. It has gone up very fast.

I was in the Pav just the other day and the new toilets are far and away better than the old ones. It's a great job they did there. I laugh at the wheelchair buttons on the doors of it with the massive steps outside.

[adhoc]

It's smaller than I expected too. It has gone up very fast.

I was in the Pav just the other day and the new toilets are far and away better than the old ones. It's a great job they did there. I laugh at the wheelchair buttons on the doors of it with the massive steps outside.

There is a lift that enables wheelchair users to avoid the massive steps.

[notjim]

The Luce Hall extension/conversion application is now online, it is 4269/09

PROTECTED STRUCTURE-Permission for the re-development of Luce Hall and its extension onto Pearse Street to provide for circa 4400sqm of student facilities. The development will comprise: The erection of a four storey over basement redbrick frontage to Pearse Street with a set-back terrace at third floor level containing Society Rooms, Library and Student Bar. The reconfiguration of Luce Hall (1979) to include a new mezzanine floor and to provide student union and outreach facilities with a new atrium. A glazed roof light to 21m high, entrance canopy and new glazing and signage to Luce Hall. The removal of the existing wall and railings along Pearse Street. All on a circa 0.195ha site adjacent to 183 Pearse Street (protected structure, Item 6649) and the Pearse Street railway bridge, Pearse Street, Dublin 2.

[Cathal Dunne]

The Luce Hall extension/conversion application is now online, it is 4269/09

PROTECTED STRUCTURE-Permission for the re-development of Luce Hall and its extension onto Pearse Street to provide for circa 4400sqm of student facilities. The development will comprise: The erection of a four storey over basement redbrick frontage to Pearse Street with a set-back terrace at third floor level containing Society Rooms, Library and Student Bar. The reconfiguration of Luce Hall (1979) to include a new mezzanine floor and to provide student union and outreach facilities with a new atrium. A glazed roof light to 21m high, entrance canopy and new glazing and signage to Luce Hall. The removal of the existing wall and railings along Pearse Street. All on a circa 0.195ha site adjacent to 183 Pearse Street (protected structure, Item 6649) and the Pearse Street railway bridge, Pearse Street, Dublin 2.

Sounds exciting. Are there any images of the project there, notjim? I'll have a look on the Director of Buildings' site to see if they have some there.

[missarchi]

Is that for real?

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...........((.....*~_.......”=-._......“;,,./`..../”............../
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............(....`=-,,.......`........................(......;_,,-”
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,,_..........}.>-._...................................|........... ...`=~-,
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........................................_........ ..._,-%.......`
...................................,Dear God, make it stop!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7fv5dlozk8

I reserve judgement until I see the façade! They mostly do excellent work but fingers crossed a rabbit comes out of the hat.... The burrowing was triangular

[gunter]

The steel framework of the 'Long Room Hub' peeping up over the 1930s reading room.

They've obviously designed this to fill this gap and address the front square.

This is going to be interesting.

[notjim]

Yes, I was surprised by just how squarely it stands behind the reading room, because of the walls each side, it is hard to get a view where it doesn't look like that. I am so curious about how this will work out.

[Cathal Dunne]

There is a lift that enables wheelchair users to avoid the massive steps.

Ah, well that makes sense. I mustn't have seen the lift.

[Devin]

Well O'Donnell & Tuomey are back with a new proposal for the Pearse Street frontage of Trinity College adjacent to the railway bridge, their previous one for demolition of 5 protected structures and creation of new entrance building having been trashed by An Bord Pleanala Inspector Kevin Moore as an "over-elaborate, unecessarily excessive opening onto the street" when there are "distinct opportunities to provide alternative access in a more simplistic and subtle manner that is more in keeping with the under-stated accesses common to the college." Read his full rant against it here (open 'Inspector's report' and see 'Assessment'): http://www.pleanala.ie/casenum/217882.htm

So the new one is to keep the 5 protected structures and construct a new building in the gap between them and the railway bridge, and some other buildings behind, as seen above. Ref. is 4269/09

[notjim]

The Academy of the Dramatic Arts announced today; RADA style theatre school with philanthropy from the Ryans.

Interestingly part as far as this thread is concerned is that it will involve some sort of building and conversion in the Enterprise Center, the old IDA site opposite those apartments on Pearse Street that were supposed to be designed by Benson and Forsythe but weren't in the end: theater, workshops and studios in what they claim will be Dublin's new cultural quarter.

[lostexpectation]

Work starts on new TCD building
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2009/1207/breaking59.htm

huh?