The Forest, University of Tasmania
An interior precedent combining a complex coffered timber roof structure with heavy, curved rammed-earth volumes and integrated seating niches—ideal for academic or public atriums.
- What we like about this project
- Curved acoustic upholstery recesses built seamlessly into the massive curved structural pods.
Materials
- timber
- rammed-earth
- brick
- upholstery
- glass
Visual identifiers
- coffered-timber-roof
- curved-rammed-earth-pods
- tiered-stair
- textured-brick-floor
Style tags
- contemporary
- biophilic
- timber-architecture
- institutional
Visual tags
- atrium
- timber-canopy
- institutional
- biophilic
- daylit
- curved-geometry
- Geometry
- Multi-level open volume featuring a dramatic coffered timber ceiling array, curving rammed-earth or textured concrete cylindrical pods, and stepped timber stairways.
- Structural guess
- Mass timber roof trusses over heavy masonry and concrete cores.
- Spatial scale
- Grand multi-story public atrium scale, designed for large groups of occupants.
- Lighting
- Bright directional sunlight streams through high clerestory windows, casting sharp diagonal light patterns across the textured brick floor and timber elements.
- Atmosphere
- Warm, luminous, and tactile, balancing the weight of earthy curves with the intricate precision of overhead timber framing.
- Environmental context
- Large public interior space within an institutional or university setting.
- Spatial experience
- The view moves from a curved balustrade down across a tiered wooden seating stair, passing beneath a complex rhythmic timber canopy toward private alcoves formed inside heavy curved walls.
- Composition rhythm
- Diagonal perspective sweeping from the sweeping timber stair in the foreground across recurring curved alcoves and rhythmic ceiling grids.
- Style reading
- Contemporary biophilic institutional interior
- Program
- University student hub / public concourse
- Perspective
- Interior Spatial
- Discipline
- interior
- Materials
- timber, rammed-earth, brick, upholstery, glass
- Visual identifiers
- coffered-timber-roof, curved-rammed-earth-pods, tiered-stair, textured-brick-floor
- Style tags
- contemporary, biophilic, timber-architecture, institutional
- Visual tags
- atrium, timber-canopy, institutional, biophilic, daylit, curved-geometry
- Geometry
- Multi-level open volume featuring a dramatic coffered timber ceiling array, curving rammed-earth or textured concrete cylindrical pods, and stepped timber stairways.
- Structural guess
- Mass timber roof trusses over heavy masonry and concrete cores.
- Spatial scale
- Grand multi-story public atrium scale, designed for large groups of occupants.
- Lighting
- Bright directional sunlight streams through high clerestory windows, casting sharp diagonal light patterns across the textured brick floor and timber elements.
- Atmosphere
- Warm, luminous, and tactile, balancing the weight of earthy curves with the intricate precision of overhead timber framing.
- Environmental context
- Large public interior space within an institutional or university setting.
- Spatial experience
- The view moves from a curved balustrade down across a tiered wooden seating stair, passing beneath a complex rhythmic timber canopy toward private alcoves formed inside heavy curved walls.
- Composition rhythm
- Diagonal perspective sweeping from the sweeping timber stair in the foreground across recurring curved alcoves and rhythmic ceiling grids.
- Style reading
- Contemporary biophilic institutional interior
- Program
- University student hub / public concourse
- Perspective
- Interior Spatial
- Discipline
- interior