• clientUNIVERSITY OF WARSAW
  • statusCOMPETITION 2017 - 1ST PRIZE
  • teamPIOTR BUJNOWSKI ARCHITEKT + PROJEKT PRAGA
  • team of authorsPIOTR BUJNOWSKI, MARCIN GARBACKI, KAROLINA TUNAJEK, ZOFIA STACHURA, JAN SZKARŁAT
  • cooperationMALWINA MĄKA, KATARZYNA KROKOS, JOANNA RYŻKO
  • installations documentationREWITECH
  • visualizationsRENDEREK, ZOFIA STACHURA, JAN SZKARŁAT

The new Warsaw University Department of Psychology research and lecture building will be located at the Ochota Campus, in the vicinity of the future University Forum.

The starting point of the concept were issues related to the spatial order of the campus: bonding with the city, connecting to the Maria Skłodowska-Curie Theme Park, and shaping public space around the building with the view to the planned University Forum.

On this foundation, the concept of a building composed of a disciplined, restrained and neutral main body was developed, juxtaposed with a multifunctional roof, attracting users and animating campus life.

The motto of openness accompanies the elements of the concept in different scales and meanings, as an idea corresponding to the character of contemporary academic education based on dialogue, exchange of knowledge, interaction and cooperation.

The public ground floor and roof garden open onto the campus, while the floors of the building open to the inside. The teaching and research areas are arranged around a multifunctional atrium – a space inviting integration, exchange and meetings, welcoming all users: lecturers, PhD students, undergraduates and guests.

Going beyond the ground floor and arranging a multifunctional public space under a roofed square entrance is an important element of integration of the new building with its surroundings. The exit from the underground car park, restaurant and café gardens, bicycle parking, seats, and organized greenery are all under the roof.

Locating public functions, also available to users from outside the faculty (exhibition space, canteen, café, auditorium), on the ground floor strengthens the presence of the building on the background of the campus scale, making it useful and attractive for a wide range of recipients.

The part of the ground floor available to the public has been glazed, while the main façade of the building was formed using two motifs: thickened modular divisions introduced on the administrative floor and other areas with less visual access and sunshine exposition; and from open glazed sections in all teaching rooms and rooms, emphasizing the open, friendly character of both the building and the teaching and research space.