Photograph

West Dean College Gardens Visitor’s Center: Photographs of building interior

01/01/1996

Interior View

Image of the long and narrow upper gallery with a sequence of sitting alcoves in front of each window.

Photographer:

Nicolas Kane, Near Chichester, West Sussex, U.K.

Source:

Digital

Characteristics:

Color

Content of

Project

West Dean College Gardens Visitor's Center 1994 to 1996

Near Chichester, West Sussex, U.K.

Civic, Realized , Construction completed in Nov. 1995

Client:

Edward James Foundation

C.E.S. staff:

Christopher Alexander, John Hewitt, students from "The Prince of Wales's Institute of Architecture", students from Portsmouth University

Contractor:

Center for Environmetal Structure, as Management Contractor and General Contractor of record, with John Hewitt as Project Manager

Project stages:

Layout on the site by clients and C.E.S. Use of full scale mock-ups Design Development and Building Permit drawings done after layout Direct construction management and on-site design decisions Budget and subcontractors under C.E.S. control Innovativ

The West Dean Center is a simple one-story masonry building with a large red-tiled roof and intricate brickwork for its thick walls. The building is surrounded by gardens, and its south facing wall has large arched windows overlooking the garden ...

References

Scientific Research

Geometry and Fifteen Fundamental Properties

Areas of focus:

Structure of Space

Guiding idea:

Centers and Fields of Centers

Christopher Alexander recognized the importance of the geometry of centers and for years he was looking for the common structural features among buildings, paintings, streets, carpets, doors, windows, etc. which have "life" and "wholeness". He identified fifteen structural features which ...

Photographs

West Dean College Gardens Visitor's Center: Interior space at the stage on being visualized and designed - Photographs of mock-ups 01/01/1994

Project, Design Process, Mock-up

Photographer:

Christopher Alexander/C.E.S., Near Chichester, West Sussex, U.K.

Source:

Digital

Characteristics:

B&W

Photograph of full scale mock-ups done on the construction site, using concrete blocks and other loose construction material. It is shot while testing the size, width, position and extent of the tiny stairs that come from the gallery into the ...