A STRAIGHTER LINE

摘要

The iconic image of Evelyn Grace Academy in south London has to be the red running track under the building. Racing into the distance it recreates the dynamism of a Zaha Hadid sketch, transfiguring the surprisingly ordinary linear school block designed by the practice. It has many of Hadid's signatures: built at 72 degrees, good concrete, black to grey colour palette, linear expression and indeterminate ground plane. In fact this undercroft with its racing track could be the best used in all her buildings, having a dedicated programme on a tight site. But what it doesn't have is the morphing three dimensional form that makes some of the practice's work so powerful conceptually and spatially. This is a more straightforward building easily captured by good old-fashioned plans.