Image via Cupertino.org
As Apple’s Campus 2 site steadily progresses closer toward someday being complete, Architectural Record (via Mac Rumors) has shared a recent Q&A with architect Norman Foster, the designer responsible for the structure and appearance of the future campus. In the interview, Foster describes the evolution of the project and working with Steve Jobs on Apple’s Campus 2, which is currently in the midst of construction after being approved by the city of Cupertino just last fall…
The main building is set to hold 12,000 people under one (giant circle) roof, and Foster compares that to a university with as many students with more than a dozen separate buildings. Among other topics, Foster cites Jobs’ appreciation for the Main Quad at Stanford’s campus as a point of reference for how to scale the project.
Steve’s memories of California’s orchards in his youth certainly resonate with Apple’s vision for the site formerly maintained by Hewlett-Packard. The mockup shown below provided by Cupertino.org offers an aerial perspective of the campus with noticeably more nature (80% landscape) than its surroundings.
Meanwhile, the reference point for Steve [Jobs] was always the large space on the Stanford campus—the Main Quad—which Steve knew intimately. Also, he would reminisce about the time when he was young, and California was still the fruit bowl of the United States. It was still orchards.
We did a continuous series of base planning studies. One idea which came out of it is that you can get high density by building around the perimeter of a site, as in the squares of London.
Foster goes on to discuss the logistics of working in such a massive, circular shaped building.
While previous reports have shared details about the project’s cost and process and the current state of the land, Foster’s comments offer an interesting perspective from its designer. The project, which dates back publicly to Steve Jobs’ presentation to Cupertino’s city ouncil in early 2011, is expected to reach completion in 2016.
Remember also that the scale is broken down by cafés and lobbies and entrances. Then, a significant segment of that circle is the restaurant, which opens up to the landscape. You have four-story-high glass walls, which can literally move sideways and just open up into the landscape. So the social facilities break down the scale.
And of course you have the benefit of jogging and cycling trails—more than a thousand bikes will be kept on the site—and also pathways and landscaping connections.
There’s also the buried car park. You won’t look out of your window and see row after row of parked cars.
You can read the full Q&A with Norman Foster here.
