Last week, in history and theory of design, we broke up into small groups and took a walk around the campus. We were observing how often columns, stacks, and groves are used in the architecture around us. We are now taking a closer look and comparing the campus to The Acropolis and Xianyang Palace in reference to ten key points of interest: space, power, experience, principles, precedent, site, order, scale, technology, and surface.
Space: UNCG is not the only university in the Greensboro are, in fact it is competing with several other schools. Most of the buildings on campus have a grand entrance way with white columns that emphasize the front of the buildings; this is a common characteristic through out Greensboro. The buildings are constructed of brick and the newer building also included a lot of big open windows. The parking areas are on the outskirts of the campus giving the campus a slight enclosed feeling.
Power: I have never thought about power when looking at all the buildings that surround me everyday. The buildings all differ in size however, due to there huge stature it is difficult to determine which one is the most important. I would say the building that attracts the most students would hold the most power, that could be the library or maybe the cafeteria.
Experience: There are many historical buildings mixed around campus, including the Foust Building, Spencer Hall, the Quad, the Chancellor's Residence, Aycock Auditorium, and the Alumni house. These and all the other buildings are part of the experience one will have while on the campus.
Principles: UNCG has many reasons for existing but if narrowed down to one main one, it would be giving students an education. The Jackson library is where most students go to study and get homework done; an edition was added to the original library making it the tallest building on campus. The library is a contributing factor in helping the school give students an educat
Precedent: The library is not only the tallest building on campus but it is also right at the center axis of the school.
Site: The details on the building are sometimes missed by students rushing to their next class. However, if all the building were made completely of brick and blended together the campus would not be as beautiful. The white inlaid stones and large, welcoming entrances give the buildings a look of elegance. There is a wide variety of trees and plants all around campus which is always nice to see on a sunny day.
Order: There are many ways UNCG has order, especially when it comes to the roads and the sidewalks. There is a main road that goes all the way through campus, College Avenue, and all other streets branch out. This is a great way to help students to know where they are going, the sidewalks can be a little confusing but most lead back to College Avenue at some point.
Scale: UNCG's campus is about 190 acres and consist of at least 80 buildings. It is a large school and because of the large amount of land it is built across, walking across campus would take a good amount of time. Having major landmarks, like fountain in front of the EUC, can serve as a hang out spot or a resting area. Having so much space to work with, enabled the campus to have lots of trees and greener which makes the long walks all the better.
Technology: UNCG has computer labs in most of the buildings, and projection technology in the classrooms. It also has the technology to offer more than 100 undergraduate, 61 master's, and 26 doctoral programs to offer more than 18,000 students. There is a well developed system that the school uses to keep up with the grounds and give the student an education all year, at all times.
Surface: Going back to the site of the school, the brick buildings are appealing in a professional and welcoming manner. UNCG has a very nice campus and is maintained well, with the amount of student who attend the school it would be easy for it to become a bit of a mess and out of control.
