Southampton, Southampton University, General

Building Notes

In 1956 Southampton University appointed Basil Spence and Partners as consultant architects and planners. Partner Jack Bonnington took a lead role in the project. They were tasked with producing a 25-year development plan for the 52 acre Highfield Campus site. During this time it was envisaged that the number of students would increase from about 1,000 to 4,000.

Between 1959 and 1973 the practice designed 15 buildings for the University. The Senior Common Room, 1960 (cost 120,000 pounds), Arts Buildings 1 and 2, 1963 (350,000 pounds), and the Nuffield Theatre, 1964 (cost 160,000 pounds), were arranged to form a landscaped courtyard known as the Arts Quadrangle. Plans to build a Great Hall and Chapel with this group of buildings were never realised. The Engineering faculty became centralised with the construction of the Tizard Building, the Lanchester Building (both 1963) and the Electrical and Civil Engineering Building (1963). The total cost of the engineering buildings was 1,280,000 pounds. Close by, the Chemistry Building, 1963 (cost 410,000 pounds), the Physics Building, 1966 (cost 800,000 pounds), and the Geology and Botany Building, 1967 (cost 730,000 pounds), were built to form a science 'zone'.

The original development plan stated the benefits of grouping the faculties in this way.

Archive Details

The Sir Basil Spence Archive illustrates the fluid nature of the development proposals. For example, the revised plan of 1964 suggested making provisions for 10,000 students and 2,500 cars, a marked increase on the original figure. Equally, the Pre-clinical Medical Sciences Building, 1972 (cost 2,800,000 pounds), was designed so that it could be expanded in any direction to accommodate the changing requirements of the faculty.

The Archive material also illustrates that the practice was keen to integrate the existing buildings into the modern plan. For example, the decision to use red brick was taken because it was a local building material. The practice also attempted to establish a sense of order and cohesion over the disparate elements of the site by only using multiples of five feet in their designs.

Archive Summary

The Sir Basil Spence Archive holds six manuscript folders, 79 drawings and 69 photographs relating to Southampton University. The manuscript material includes journal articles which give detailed assessments of individual buildings. The correspondence and development proposals allow for a good understanding of the overall plans for the university. The drawings include site plans as well as plans, sections and elevations of the arts quadrangle. The photographic material includes a number interior and exterior photographs by Henk Snoek.

This text was written as one of the outputs of the Sir Basil Spence Archive Project, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, 2005-08.

Building Notes

In 1956 Basil Spence and Partners was appointed consultant architects and planners to oversee the expansion of Southampton University’s Highfield Campus. Partner Jack Bonnington led the Project. The period 1960 to 1964 saw the construction of the Arts Buildings 1 and 2, the Senior Common Room and the Nuffield Theatre which together constitute the 'arts quadrangle'.

The Senior Common Room, 1960 (cost 120,000 pounds), is a single storey building, roughly rectangular in design which houses the common rooms, dining rooms, conference rooms and kitchen facilities. The fully glazed walls allow for views of the landscaped valley in which the university is situated. Where the land falls away the brick basement walls are exposed. There are two internal courtyards with water features.

The Nuffield Theatre, 1964 (cost 160,000 pounds), was funded by a donation from the Nuffield Foundation and is sited opposite the Senior Common Room. As well as providing a modern theatre space, the building also contained the arts faculty’s principal lecture theatre, the music department, a concert hall and a film house. It is closely integrated with the adjacent Arts Building, sharing its entrance hall, foyer, cloakrooms and toilets. The 500-seat auditorium and stage are clad externally in copper.

The Arts Building, 1963 (cost 350,000 pounds), is a four storey, flat roofed structure, with regular windows and little in the way of detailing. Its accommodation includes offices and lecture, committee and exhibition rooms. It is faced in Derbyshire stone. These three buildings form a courtyard, the centerpiece of which is a pool with a sculpture by F E McWilliam.

Archive Details and Summary

The Sir Basil Spence Archive holds six manuscript folders, 79 drawings and 71 photographs relating to Southampton University. Included in the manuscript material are a number of journal articles, reports and correspondence relating to the Nuffield Theatre and the Senior Common Room; the articles offer a detailed architectural assessment of the buildings and are well illustrated. There are a number of drawings of the different elements of the arts quadrangle, including elevations and plans. There are also a number of exterior photographs and some interior views of the Senior Common Room.

The Sir Basil Spence Archive illustrates that the building of the arts quadrangle conformed with the five foot pattern established by Spence and Jack Bonnington (all measurements were to be multiples of five) to make best use of the limited 52 acre site and give cohesion to the whole design.

This text was written as one of the outputs of the Sir Basil Spence Archive Project, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, 2005-08.