The Boyd Orr Building – Glasgow
Construction: 1972
Architects: Dorward Matheson Gleave & Partners

A part of the University of Glasgow, the Boyd Orr Building houses several different functions including a variety of lecture theatres, seminar rooms and offices. The interior rooms of the building, indeed any of the University’s buildings, can be seen using their handy room photo service. The shape of the lecture theatres on the ground floor is clear when viewing the exterior, while several interconnected blocks rise 7 stories above. The building is clad in two different colours of rough aggregate concrete panels, giving it an uncompromising look. As you climb the staircase to the main entrance, you notice that the corners of the square blocks on the ground floor are absent and replaced by thin piloti. Where the piloti join the blocks on the first floor, the rough cladding is stripped back to reveal a nice bit of functional detailing. Some of the connected buildings are heavy square blocks, supported on long rows of piers, a modernist take on the classical colonnade. While there are a lot of windows, many are of an unusual translucent glass. Perhaps there were concerns about students being distracted by the views the building offers over the wonderful city of Glasgow.