MSA Statement

Out of all the universities I visited, Manchester was the one I like most. I would love to study in the centre of Manchester, a vibrant, lively city with an eclectic range of architectural styles – from the London Road Fire Station to the Urbis building. I appreciate how the School of Architecture has strong links with so many other university departments and is based in the School of Arts building, as I would value the cross-fertilisation of ideas and the chance to explore the synergies between art and architectural study. The quality and range of work in the exhibition at the open day also convinced me that Manchester would be an amazing place to study. I’m told the School encourages exploration of your own specific interests in architecture which is particularly exciting.

Eduardo Souto de Moura’s House of Stories in Cascais, Portugal, is definitely one of my favourite buildings. The vibrant red of the concrete, contrasted with the natural green surroundings, immediately draws you in. The lack of windows or ornamental intricacy makes the building’s pyramidal towers striking – and so adopting traditional Portuguese forms (namely, the conical chimneys of the Sintra Palace) and placing them in a modern, innovative context. The dramatic rigidity of the building’s outline is juxtaposed with the curvature of the surrounding trees, and as the sun sets, the red of the concrete becomes increasingly brilliant, broken up by arching shadows of trees. The interiors of the towers have a single skylight each – this natural light, streaming from above and illuminating the tapering white walls, creates an almost ethereal space.

The ‘Blavatnik School of Government’ building, designed by Herzog and de Mueron, is a recent addition to Oxford. The circular glass building creates a surprisingly dramatic contrast with the smaller, more traditional buildings surrounding it on the street. Despite this contrast, subtle aspects of the Blavatnik link it to the surrounding architectural character of Oxford. For example, the layering of different shapes, stacked on top of each other, echoes the circular shapes of buildings like the Radcliffe Camera and the Sheldonian Theatre. Likewise, the facade of vertical panelled-glass recalls the proportions of the Radcliffe Camera, whilst the sandstone edging subtly links the Blavatnik with the traditional architecture of the city.

I would love to view the Villa Savoye, by le Corbusier; his architectural philosophy of ‘machine for living’ and form following function are so influential that I'd love to see first-hand the physical manifestation of his ideas. I particularly like modernist architecture and the Villa Savoye is an iconic archetype of the modernist movement. The way in which architecture and design was broken down into a rational and regulated practice is something that I find fascinating.