The University of Sussex by Basil Spence: Graphical Insight of the First ‘Plateglass University’

Abstract

In 1963, the Robbins report helped to reveal the post-war crisis of British higher education and advised new guidelines on university access policies. Energetic measures were undertaken to change this situation: the promotion of seven universities labelled as Plateglass Universities, where academics and architects worked together to achieve innovative curricula and building designs related to social character and community consideration. The University of Sussex, designed by Basil Spence, is the unique case study for several reasons. Firstly, it was a premature Plateglass University and served as an architectural, social, and educational experiment. Secondly, as a whole, it was exclusively entrusted to a single and mature architect trained in Modernism. Thirdly, an extensive graphic documentation of the design process was kept, today stored in Historic Environment Scotland (Sir Basil Spence Archive). Thus, the purpose of this paper is to highlight these unique traits by analysing the existing documents. Here, drawing and project go hand in hand in a process where environmental and territorial thoughts coincide with dimensional precisions marked by geometric patterns. The plans, elevations, sections and perspectives of the design show the print that the graphic tool left on it.