Futuristic learning
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Construction work on the innovative structure lasted for 30 months. (EPFL) -
Concrete was poured in two phases into 4,000 digitally modeled wooden frameworks, using a GPS system to ensure precision. (EPFL) EPFL -
View of the Learning Centre, in the heart of the new campus, from Lake Geneva. (EPFL) -
The arches raise much of the building off the ground creating outdoor spaces underneath. (Keystone/Martial Trezzini) -
Swiss cabinet members (left to right) Micheline Calmy-Rey, Samuel Schmid, Hans-Rudolf Merz, Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf, Pascal Couchepin, Doris Leuthard and Moritz Leuenberger sign a foundation stone in July 2008. The federal authorities are paying half of the SFr100 million budget. (Keystone/Laurent Gillieron) Keystone -
The Learning Centre has captured the public's attention in French-speaking Switzerland. The building will be open to students and the general public from February 22. (Keystone/Martial Trezzini) Keystone -
The architects have created a single fluid space where students can meet and study in an airy environment without dividing walls, where one area of activity gives way to another. (EPFL) -
The 700 curved glass façades, most of which are unique, have to move independently on jointed frames. (EPFL) -
View from a "plateau" meeting space. (Keystone/Dominic Favre) Keystone -
The library has one of the largest collections of scientific literature in Europe with over 500,000 volumes. (Keystone/Dominic Favre) Keystone -
The 14 glass patios help bring daylight into the huge one-story building. (Keystone/Dominic Favre) Keystone -
The building will be open to students and the general public every day from 7am to midnight. (EPFL)
The experimental Rolex Learning Centre has opened its doors.
This content was published on February 17, 2010
The radical, open, undulating student building at Lausanne's Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) was designed by the Japanese star architect team SANAA.
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