Vignoli managed to fit his building into a very difficult stretch between the main campus and the slope of Mount Sutro, which has long been empty due to its strong 60-degree slope. The architect created a cantilever structure supported by a protruding steel frame on concrete supports. Rather than constructing a long, thin tower, saving the customer's money, Vignoli proposed a tape-like building that echoed the whimsical curves of the hill and the winding motorway along it. This decision was prompted by the function of the new building: the Center for Regenerative Medicine unites about 250 stem cell researchers from the University of California, and the building with a total area of about 80 thousand m2 was intended mainly for laboratories, as well as offices and several conference rooms. Vignoli's architectural concept encourages interaction and collaboration between scientists.
Compositionally, the building is a single and continuous research area, consisting of four sections. Thus, Vignoli took into account the possibility of overflowing constantly growing or, on the contrary, decreasing laboratories into the neighboring space, while leaving them visually connected. The four blocks are separated by intermediate recreational areas with kitchens. Laboratories are located half a floor below, while small offices and meeting rooms are half a floor higher, which made it possible to separate public spaces from private ones, like residential architecture.
The internal organization of the building, meanwhile, remains practically inaccessible to the view from the street: from the side of the campus, only its smooth, windowless corrugated steel shell is visible. But the facade facing the hill has many windows overlooking the eucalyptus forest. The only entrance here is through a glazed bridge from the main educational building.
Along the edge of the new building, facing the university campus, there is a ramp through which the staff of the Center enter their laboratories, each time making a short but impressive walk. There are also numerous staircases that lead to the upper terraces. Each of the four sections has its own roof garden with lush grasses softening the corrugated metal cladding. It offers beautiful views of northern San Francisco, including the famous Golden Gate Bridge and the park of the same name. The Vignoli project has all the qualities of a green building and is seeking LEED certification.
The Center for Regenerative Medicine is so securely hidden behind the existing 1960s university building that it cannot be seen even from the nearest street, Parnassus Avenue. The Vignoli building is best appreciated on the way from the Medical Center in the east wing of the campus to the utility entrance of the new building.
According to critics, out of 6 similar projects in California (there will be 12 in total) so far, only in the Vignoli building, architectural ambitions have reflected the scientific courage of the research taking place in it. The project cost the customer $ 94.5 million.
N. K.
