Matthew Building, University of Dundee, 13 Perth Road, Dundee, Dundee

Description

James Paul of Baxter, Clark and Paul, 1969-74; single storey glazed reception area to ground floor by Oberlanders Architects, 2012. Brutalist art and technical college building occupying a long, narrow, sloping site fronting Perth Road on the south side of the University of Dundee campus. Stepped L-plan through 9 floor levels. Flat-roofed mega-structure of partly exposed pre-cast concrete frame and panel. Principal elevation facing Perth Road comprises an asymmetric composition of vertical and horizontal projecting volumes with a canted bay to the left and glazed reception entrance at ground floor. Horizontal emphasis to side elevations with recessed glazing behind exposed concrete frame at mid-floor levels. Full-height glazed stairwells project towards higher end of side (east and west) elevations. Flush glazed stairwell to lower west side elevation. Rectangular block to rear (north) extending west to form L-plan. Long, single storey, steeply mono-pitched service wing adjoining to north. Tall metal ventilation funnels to roof.

Largely intact interior scheme in place, which was seen in 2014. Extensive use of board-marked timber shuttered concrete to central corridor spine, principal staircase and other communal areas. Central spine gallery over two floor levels, running the length of the building with mezzanine to upper level, and flanked by large classroom studios, lecture theatres and workshops with angled glazing through the mid-section. Large library at mid-level with full height glazing. Recessed vertical light-strips to main stair wells. Metal-frame windows.

Statement of Interest

The Matthew Building by Professor James Paul, of Baxter Clark and Paul, is a significant example of Brutalist architecture in Scotland. Its projecting planes and cut-away recesses exposing the structural concrete frame illustrate internal space and volume through controlled yet expressive use of concrete and glass, as well as maximising available light and space in key areas of the interior. The building mass as a whole broadly hints at ocean-liner imagery, with particular regard to the horizontal emphasis of the side elevations and the tall ventilator funnels on the roof. The quality of its mega-structural design is evidenced in its carefully thought-out plan and use of available space on a confined site. It is among a small number of education buildings that applied a thorough Brutalist design ethos and was considered among the finest examples of the style in Scotland at the time of its completion in 1974.

The Matthew Building is a bespoke art college built for the former Dundee Institute of Art & Technology. During the 1930s, the Dundee Technical College and School of Art was reorganised within the Dundee Institute of Art and Technology. The college became independent of the Institute in 1975 and was renamed Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art. The college remained independent until 1994, when it became (and continues to be) part of the University of Dundee Art and Architecture department.

The post-war period in Britain saw much emphasis placed on comprehensive education and the development of new universities such as the completely new site at Stirling and newly incarnated universities such as Strathclyde University in Glasgow. Newly emerging ideologies in architectural thought were given space for experimentation in buildings for further education. In the 1950s, ambitious building programmes were underway at Glasgow, Edinburgh as well as Dundee, and the Robbins Report published in 1963 provided a further impetus for change, recommending a raft of new buildings at existing university sites, often by nationally significant architects.

Brutalism developed between the late-1950s and the late 1970s and was prevalent in Britain in the late 1960s and early 1970s for large and ambitious state-sponsored commissions for government, educational and civic building projects. Brutalism is taken from the French - breton brut or "raw concrete" and the style is characterised by the extensive use of concrete for its functional as well as its sculptural qualities on a massive or mega-structural scale. An overtly functional aesthetic (which is almost industrial in character) and the practical use of space are key considerations. In Scotland examples of the style include the mega-structure at Cumbernauld New Town Centre Phase 1 (1967) and James Stirling's Andrew Melville Halls of Residence at St Andrew's University (1964) (see separate listing).

The Matthew Building has a particularly close association with the architect mainly responsible for its design. James Paul began working at the Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee in 1956 where he helped build up the Department of Architecture, resulting in the need for additional accommodation. He was promoted to the position of Head of the School of Architecture at the college in 1965, one of the youngest people in the country to hold such a position, and held this position until his retirement in 1994. He was in private practice with James Parr & Partners in Dundee from 1957-9, and then with Johnston & Baxter until 1962 when that firm became Baxter Clark and Paul. James Paul designed the Matthew Building in 1969 and remained with Baxter Clark & Paul until 1979 when he set up practice on his own as James Paul Associates. His later work included assisting with Edinburgh and Aberdeen airports and in the Dundee area, the (1994) grandstands at Tannadice Park stadium for Dundee United Football Club.

External Links

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