It is not designed to be a place of traditional beauty with its gray concrete walls. It is a place of pure functionality with its tables and chairs under bright modern lights. It even has opaque white blinds to block out the view of the outside world. But it has its own unique charm due to its lack of distractions which allows students to focus on their presenter. It also hints at its place in the greater design of the building with its wood floors and dark wood door frames. It is a place for educating the minds of the people who went the extra step of joining one of the learning communities. This is the classroom of the elite, the need for a key card and the air-conditioning all but proves it.
So remember when walking through the sophisticated halls of Mosher-Jordan, below your feet there is a room that knows how to get business done.
I really enjoyed reading your analysis of this room as it was full of creative thoughts and ideas. I completely agree with your points on the wood floor and trim. I think the pattern of the wood floor is extremely elegant which does seem out of sorts with a typical dorm. I also found it interesting that the tables were of different shapes. This must be so that the learning communities can split up into various-sized groups during their class time to discuss their lectures.
ReplyDeleteBesides the black chairs - which look very comfortable and versatile with the thick cushions and wheels - the room is very bright. You mentioned the opaque white blinds and, although I am unfamiliar with the size of the windows, perhaps the light colored walls and tables make up for the fact that the room doesn't receive much sunlight. I also appreciate the high ceilings, further adding to the lightness of the room. I lived in Markley my freshman year and was part of a living-learning community, and I remember the janky classroom we used which was extremely dark and had low ceilings; I always wanted to get out of that dungeon as soon as possible, so I didn't enjoy my living-learning community class, unfortunately. I think this room was designed very well for a classroom for living-learning community students. It functions to create an interactive environment where students can share their ideas, all while feeling slightly removed from their dorms so they have a sense of distance from their dorms to their classroom.