Spatial Sequence as Campus Image

Almost every campus has a string of open spaces which structure and inform the campus design. Particularly attractive and memorable are those places where the pedestrian movement through the space is carefully orchestrated for its aesthetic effects. Two approaches to such image-inducing designs are evident in the snapshots of Oxford and Pomona College.

The first is a fine example of geometric designs, arranged in a sequence of outer and inner spaces, with the route through marked by the formal elements of classical architecture. Particularly attractive is the beckoning sunlight in the courtyard beyond the threshold, and the visible hint of additional open space and buildings beyond. As Oxford patrons intended, the underlying theme is orderly monumentality.

Landscape and buildings - ensemble, mark the Pomona concept. Like a musical theme restated in a Mozart symphony, the bending, blending, bridging trees echo the building archway, and reinforce the concept of a processional way. As the College founders desired, the design expresses well their goal of developing a "college in a garden."

Richard P. Dober