No_7_November_and_December__1950 — Page 12

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HONG KONG UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE

WORK OF THE FIRST YEAR STUDENTS

THE CITADEL.

GATE OF LIONS i

TEMPLE OF NIKE APTEROS.

THE ACROPOLIS

M

-L. U

A GREEK HUT

FACADE OF PARTHE NON

TREASURY OF ATREUS

A drawing sheet in bold pencilled lines of a study in Grecian architecture.

Sketch of Shek O Beach in coloured crayon.

A water colour impression done in Chinese style.

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We publish a few examples of the work which is being done at the new School of Architecture in the University. Many architects will have wondered not only how the School is developing but how the students, as a group, were shaping to the course which Professor Gordon Brown, with a very high standard of the Architectural Association at Edinburgh behind him, is putting into operation.

Almost from his very first day at the School eoncentrated training is given to the students in lettering work.

Good lettering is one of the severest test of good draughtsmanship and feelings for design in students in junior years. The num- ber of examples which we have seen is a fair indication that the standard attained by the students as a whole is of first class quality, Professor Gordon Brown insists, for example, that all Roman lettering must be done free hand. This adds greatly to the refining of the lettering, but the curves such as the curve in the "O" and other letters present the student with a very severe test which becomes a very useful pre- liminary to the more advanced studies.

The first drawing we show is the result of an eight-hour sketch in which students were asked to design some sort of shelter for the pier in front of the Electra House. The solution shown here is an extremely simple reinforced concrete canopy supported by a double row of reinforced concrete columns.

Our second illustration shows the first sketch which students were given. It is of a small week-end cottage on an island near Hong Kong. The design and the presentation show restraint and sense of quality.

The third example is of two quick sketches done on one of the many sketching tours which are made by the students every week.

It is interesting to compare the two drawings, one of which is an example of the early stages of Professor Gordon Brown's effort to ensure that students are trained in Chinese as well as in European painting.

The last drawing show is a study sheet executed in one day and forms part of the History Course. It will be appreciated that the course of History of Architecture, which covers everything from the Egyptian period to the end of the 19th Century, is a preparation for one of the most difficult examinations of the R.I.B.A. It is an added difficulty for students who have no personal knowledge of Europe.

This sheet with its very high standard of draughtsmanship and the immense amount of work, which most obviously have been put in to complete it in one day, shows that the students are taking this part of their course very seriously.

It will be remembered that this School of Architecture has still to complete its first year. These drawings and the School's willingness to exhibit them are an indication of the per- formance of these young Architectural students and the confidence which is felt in them by their instructors.