45. Modernist Oxford

SaLADS were fortunate to have special access to a number of Oxford Modernist masterpieces including Arne Jacobsen’s St Catherine’s college, and Powell and Moya’s Wolfson College both listed and with award winning recent extensions.

St Catherine’s College was built in 1962 by Danish architect Arne Jacobsen. His vision was to build an entirely modern solution to the challenge of creating an integrated environment which would be both practical and aesthetically pleasing, whilst still reflecting the elements of a traditional Oxford college. The result was a rectangular quadrangle at the heart of the college surrounded by buildings in glass and concrete, which married modern materials with a more traditional layout. Its sides are formed by student rooms built in the conventional Oxford ‘staircase’ format, whilst its ends consist of the Dining Hall and Library.

Wolfson College’s main building was designed by Powell and Moya Architects and completed in 1974. It has three quadrangles: the central quadrangle named the Berlin Quad, the Tree Quad built around established trees, and the River Quad into which the River Cherwell has been diverted to form a punt harbour. The main building and footbridge across the river were grade II listed in June 2011.