In 2002, for the first time in its seventy-five year history, Bennington College embarked on a comprehensive study of its rural campus. Over the years, building types representing three distinct periods made up the campus core. There were many former estate buildings that predated the college, buildings organized on a Beaux-arts plan, and distinguished, modern structures organized by topography.
The campus master plan was needed to accommodate increased enrollment and reinvigorate the college’s commitment to the landscape as a significant part of its curriculum and culture. The plan encompassed building and programming needs, led by an architect; however, it was the landscape and the site itself that the landscape architect suggested was the element that had defined the college’s identity and was the feature that would guide its future expansion.
The plan identifies successful design elements already on campus, and proposes that they be implemented more widely. It also brings forth the unique features of Bennington’s ridge-top situation and recognizes nine distinct zones of landscape character that are used to organize a set of specific recommendations and standards. Therefore, the landscape character became the primary mode of rationalizing and explaining larger developments.
Over the past six years, the plan has guided implementation projects, including three new residence halls, new student center, admissions parking and arrival landscape, new walks, jogging trails, vista pruning, pond revitalization, new signage and lighting.
The master plan and the history of the site also allowed the community to rally around the preservation of important features.
Recognizing the landscape as the center of the campus life also led to shifting the physical and symbolic center of campus from a building to Jennings meadow, beloved open space that recalls the site’s agrarian past and provides a venue for new buildings.
The removal of vehicles from the campus core and the establishment of a pedestrian zone further reinforced the centrality of the landscape on a day-to-day basis. Vehicles were redirected to perimeter locations and a network of campus paths wove the site together while reaching out into the surrounding landscape. The entry drive through a matrix of open meadows and woodland was restored and new signage was integrated into the landscape. Vertical elements using perforated text to allow the landscape to literally read through the signage.
The jury said “This project is beautiful in its simplicity . . . it celebrates the natural environment.”
Project Team: Bennington College with Reed Hilderbrand Associates Inc. and Roll Barresi & Associates, signage and Kyu Sung Woo Architects Inc., collaborating architect. |
