UCSD: A Brief Introduction | Jason R Woods

Breezeway between Bonner Hall & Mayer Hall at UCSD by Risley & Gould. Photo by Jason R. Woods.

As mentioned in my previous post, I was recently fortunate enough to find myself at UCSD photographing a commission (more on that later), and couldn’t pass up the chance to wander the campus a bit. The light wasn’t ideal, so I only photographed what I thought would be usable. Turns out, it allowed me to get a couple of the highlights. The breezeway seen above and below connects two residence halls and is one of the most distinctive designs on a campus filled with uniqueness. Hexagonal concrete tree-like structures simply repeat across the span of the two buildings five levels high. As a Michigander, I’m envious of open-air architecture like this, since it would be wholly impractical where I live for most of the year.

Breezeway between Bonner Hall & Mayer Hall at UCSD by Risley & Gould. Photo by Jason R. Woods.

York Hall at UCSD by Neptune & Thomas. Photo by Jason R. Woods.

John Muir College is reason enough to get me back to La Jolla. It is a general studies school within UCSD and features mostly concrete architecture by a number of architects led by Robert Mosher. Each building is unique, but with a shared material and master plan, the campus feels cohesive. Given the school’s namesake, there was an effort to maintain a connection to nature, achieved by a series of open-air corridors surrounded by mature landscaping.