Overview
UTS has never really been the prettiest university in Sydney. With the University of Sydney, in all its sandstone and ivy-covered finery just down the road, and the green expanses of UNSW in the east, it's always seemed like the clever, plainer, younger sister of the city's schools of learning. But things are changing, and UTS is beginning to blossom, spread out and grow up.
Already the gateway between Broadway and Central is looking hugely different, and now we have more alterations to the city skyline to anticipate, with the unveiling of the design for the new business school building, designed by world renowned architect Frank Gehry. The plans were announced last year as part of the university's $900 million redevelopment of its Ultimo campus, and marks a major coup for UTS, as it's likely to be Australia's only Gehry-designed building.
Models of the 'tree-house' were unveiled this week, and is due to be built on the corner of Ultimo Road and Omnibus Lane. It is meant to resemble a cluster of treehouses, with a trunk where the core of activity happens, and then branches for people to do their own thing. It will feature two distinctive facades, with one curving and folding like fabric and the other with shards of glass to reflect its surroundings.
[Via Australian Design Review]