On 27th July, I visited The architecture building in University of Melbourne Parkville campus, RMIT University building 80, and Slattery, a quantity surveying and cost engineering firm.
The architecture building in University of Melbourne was being constructed when I visited. Even though the furnitures were not placed yet, I could see the shapes and the use of space for each section. first impression of building was open and huge. The colours used for materials were white, black, grey and natural wooden colour. Some of the wooden panels had the tiny holes bored through, and created like the patterns. White is a colour that shows the objects expanded (that’s why it is not good idea to wear white tops) so using white colour for wall and ceiling made me feel surrounded and covered by this building. I liked the use of light colours (white, colour of wood) and strong colours (black) at the same time to create the firm, simple environment.
The building 80 of RMIT University was completely different from the architecture building in University of Melbourne. Its outer wall was decorated with a number of bright and rich colours on triangular metal pattern (was like an armor), which created a variation of colours. In every floor, the deep, garish colours and more than one pattern made of a characteristic material were used. For example, the metal which pattern was embossed. The iconic marks that indicate the direction of each ladies’ and gentlemen’s toilet made me interesting. One of the ideas I liked in this building was display of a floor number on the ceiling of each floor. It was hard to see from the side but was easy to see when I was on the escalator to get that floor. The shape of number was cut out and the light was set on the ceiling so it was very neat and well-designed.
The last venue I visited was Slattery. The office was in floor 14, the elevator was like a time machine that separates the mood of office and outside. The front desk of office was very simple. I noticed the soft material (like sofa) covering the front desk, wall and floor made of timber were making me feel calm and relieved. The key colours used in the office was white, wooden colour and black. I liked the consistent design in the office.
Saran Kim | Blog 