From the archives of A&B - the best Polish projects of the last decade
[A&B 12'2016 original material]
Sometimes it happens that no one would have heard of a small town, if it were not for the lucky coincidence that there is interesting architecture in the area. Not even always beautiful, but curiously ugly, recognizable and contentious. Other times it simply stands out in some respect against the background of the region, province or country - the only one of its kind. Often in some respect unique in itself, but made famous by the religious cult or historical events associated with it.
situation
© WXCA
One such example is Chęciny - a town of several thousand people in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, only 15 kilometers from Kielce, known mainly for the fact that there is a castle there from the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries, in fact its permanent ruins, which attract tourists. A much narrower circle of people know that the area is a geological rarity in Europe. In the Swietokrzyskie Mountains, in a relatively small area, it is possible to find sites illustrating as much as 560 million years of Earth's history. For this reason, not only lovers of castles and fortresses are eager to come here, but also specialists and enthusiasts of geology.
Graduates of the Faculty of Geology at the University of Warsaw return here for professional purposes and for sentimental meetings with friends from their studies. This is where student internships and field classes have been held since the 1950s. The affection for this place is confirmed by a stone donated by former students on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Warsaw Geology Department, located in front of the building. This stone bears a brass plaque with an image of the Chęciny castle, which reminds current paleontologists, stratigraphers and sedimentologists, as well as geochemists or mineralogists of the best student days.
visualization
© WXCA
The European Center for Geological Education is the realization of the UW professors' dream of a permanent research base in the center of this educational training ground. It is here, in an exploited quarry on the southern slope of Rzepki Mountain, that the University of Warsaw lived to see a modern complex, which cost more than 30 million zlotys (of which about 26 million comes from European Union funds from the regional operational program of the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, and the remaining funds are provided by a grant from the Ministry of Science and Higher Education). The opening ceremony took place in October 2015, and interestingly, it took place not through the customary ribbon-cutting, but.... breaking of calcite slabs prepared for the occasion and mined nearby. Since its commissioning, it has already served not only students and scientists from Poland, but has also attracted the interest of visitors from abroad.
cross sections
© WXCA
It has also gained international acclaim by being awarded five stars at the European Property Awards in London - the project earned the title thanks to its sustainable energy concept. The building is equipped with ground-source (glycol-water) heat pumps, which are the main source of cooling and heat for the building. The lower source consists of 91 boreholes up to 120 meters deep. Solar collectors placed on the roofs support water heating. WXCA's designers also emphasized the optimal use of natural light - protection against overheating in the building is provided by interior and exterior roller shutter systems and the high selective glass used here.
plan of level +1
© WXCA
Hand in hand with powering the building with renewable energy sources goes the care for the least visual interference with the site. It is not without significance that the complex borders an inanimate nature reserve and is surrounded by more than 30-meter high rock wall, and the whole is part of the Chęcin-Kielec Landscape Park. Greenery appears on the roofs of the buildings and in their surroundings. It is higher-order vegetation interspersed with flowery meadows and xerothermic grassland, the kind that grows naturally around the quarry, which indeed gives a very natural effect. The same is true of the path that circles the buildings, which complements the existing ribbons climbing along the crown of the rock and at its foot. Even the road surface is made from rock harvested during excavation, as are the bands around the buildings. It can be interesting to see how the architecture will age as nature settles in for good on the roofs and around the building. The question arises as to why, in a design so beholden to nature, the architects did not choose to use more organic shapes. The designers themselves write in the description of the assumptions: in the context of a spectacular natural neighborhood, we tried to avoid copying nature. Rigorous geometric forms are a reminiscence of the anthropogenic history of the place.
mockup
© WXCA
From a bird's eye view, these five cuboidal blocks look as if someone played with blocks here and then forgot to clean up after themselves, and they have been lying here so long that they have managed to grow into the ground. To build the facade, split stone blocks of limestone were used, which is identical to the rock of the quarry in terms of structure and age. The stone covering the facade is also local, quarried in nearby Bolechowice. Its peculiar layout was intended to be a reference on the one hand, and a play with traditional masonry technique on the other. The stone façade of heterogeneous tectonics is contrasted by smooth panes of glass that open up views of the lovely countryside.
visualization
© WXCA
The individual buildings are linked by a transparent connector, each with a different function. Representative functions are located in Building A, which managed to use a section of natural rock in the building's foundation as part of the auditorium wall. It houses the entrance lobby connected to the foyer and the auditorium. Another building is devoted entirely to research and laboratory purposes. Here is everything the 21st century has to offer. The middle building, like the other two, is the accommodation base - they differ in the standard of finish and color scheme in the interiors. Building C is dedicated to teaching staff and guests, while the next buildings (D and E) are by design to serve students and as facilities for organized conferences. As you know, student internships and study trips are also a time for integration, certainly common spaces such as interior courtyards do not shine empty.
A fragment of natural rock in the building's foundation was used as part of the auditorium's wall, so the room looks very unique and impressive
© WXCA
The European Center for Geological Education in Chęciny is a dream come true for professors from the Geology Department at Warsaw University. It is also undoubtedly a place that brings together scientists and lovers of this field of science from all over Europe. For students, it is certainly a great starting point for exploring knowledge under the best possible conditions. However, it is usually the case that the greatest memories of student years are not of a sterile laboratory and a room with Wi-Fi. Although at times one cursed on trips from the university one shower for a dozen people and drying shoes by the fire, years later the taste of paprikash Szczecin and anecdotes told by a lecturer in a small boarding house will stick more strongly in the memory than a warm dinner eaten in a canteen with modern facilities....
