The new NUS School of Design  Environment 4 in Singapore is the work of London-based Serie Architects and Multiply with Surbana Jurong. Photography: Rory Gardiner

Peeking gracefully above a lush canopy of foliage near the southern coastline of Singapore, the new NUS School of Design - Environment 4 is at one with its landscape in more ways than one. Not only does its porous concrete structure appear lightweight, but so too is its environmental impact. Designed by London-based Serie Architects and Multiply with Surbana Jurong, the 8,500 sq m, six-storey building is the first NET Zero Energy building of its kind in Singapore, meaning that it generates as much, if not more energy that it consumes within its building footprint.

新的NUS设计学院，在新加坡南部海岸线附近的茂密的树叶顶上优雅地窥视。

At their best, faculty buildings that house schools of architecture and design – apart from serving the functional needs of their occupants – strive to demonstrate and represent the pedagogical ambitions of the school itself, states Christopher Lee, principal of Serie Architects. ‘From the outset, it was clear that SDE intended to use the design and the completed building as a pedagogical tool for tackling the challenges of climate change in the tropics’.

SerieArchitect的校长克里斯托弗·李(ChristopherLee)表示，最好的情况是，拥有建筑和设计学校的教学楼-除了满足居住者的功能需求-努力展示并代表学校本身的教学抱负。“从一开始，SDE显然打算利用设计和完整的建筑作为一种教学工具，以应对热带气候变化的挑战”。

When designing the forward-thinking building, Lee reveals that his studio was in fact looking back – in particular to the construction of traditional Malay houses. To allow for cross ventilation in a humid climate, these houses were built on stilts with large over-sailing roofs that sheltered a loose accumulation of rooms below. ‘Our design is a revalidation of the grammar of vernacular tropical architecture in Southeast Asia,’ explains Lee.

在设计这座前瞻性建筑时，李透露他的工作室实际上是在回顾-特别是对传统马来人房屋的建造。为了在潮湿的气候下进行交叉通风，这些房子建在高耸的高跷上，上面有巨大的过度航行的屋顶，遮住了下面松散堆积的房间。“我们的设计是对东南亚本土热带建筑语法的重新验证，”Lee解释道。

The building uses concrete, glass and undulating perforated aluminium panels that moderate the sunlight. Photography: Rory Gardiner

建筑物使用混凝土，玻璃和起伏的多孔铝板，以缓和阳光。摄影：罗里·嘉丁纳

Opportunities for environmental education are numerous here. The undulating perforated aluminium panels that moderate the harsh western and eastern sun on the school’s facade are designed to be demountable, allowing students and researchers to test various façade systems on the building itself. Elsewhere, the school’s south gardens are designed as a natural purification system, where the landscape improves water quality, and nearly 50 per cent of the plants selected are native species with most hailing from the southern tropics.

这里有很多环境教育的机会。这种凹凸不平的穿孔铝板可以缓和学校正面严酷的西方和东方阳光，其设计是为了便于拆开，让学生和研究人员能够在该建筑本身测试各种外墙系统。在其他地方，该学校的南方花园被设计成一个自然净化系统，那里的景观改善了水质，所选择的近50%的植物是本土物种，其中大部分来自南部热带地区。

Thanks to the numerous terraces, landscaped balconies and informal spaces that punctuate the building’s architecture, more than 50 per cent of its total area is naturally ventilated. However, when additional cooling is needed, the client worked with Transsolar, who installed a hybrid system that uses a combination of tempered air which is less energy intensive than conventional AC cooling – with ceiling fans. ‘The resulting architecture is transparent, open, and comfortable, while at the same time requiring very little energy,’ says Lee.

由于有众多的露台、景观美化的阳台和非正式的空间，建筑时断时续，其总面积的50%以上是自然通风的。然而，当需要额外的冷却时，客户与Transsun合作，后者安装了一个混合系统，该系统使用与传统交流冷却方式相比能耗较低的回火空气的组合-带有吊扇。李说，由此产生的建筑是透明的，开放的，舒适的，同时也需要很少的能量。

The school’s open design not only facilitates natural ventilation and provides students with access to nature, but also helps to foster a collaborative learning environment – there are no boundaries between places to study, work and socialise. An open social plaza placed at the heart of the building promotes interaction and visual connectivity, while chance encounters are facilitated by a circulation system that cuts across the different studios and classrooms.

学校的开放设计不仅有利于自然通风，而且为学生提供了自然的访问，而且有助于促进协作学习环境，在学习、工作和社交场所之间没有边界。位于建筑物中心的开放社会广场促进了互动和视觉连接，而偶然相遇是通过一个循环系统来促进的，该系统跨越不同的工作室和教室。

‘SDE4 represents a scaffold for learning, teaching, and research designed for the 21st-century university,’ comments Erik L’Heureux, the school’s vice dean. ‘Not only does it envision how we teach today but also paves the way we might teach in the future.’ §

“SDE 4是为21世纪大学设计的学习、教学和研究的脚手架，”该校副院长ErikL‘Heureux评论道。它不仅设想了我们今天的教学方式，而且也为我们今后的教学铺平了道路。

这座引人注目的建筑在许多方面与它的景观融为一体。摄影：罗里·嘉丁纳，这座引人注目的建筑，在许多方面与它的景观融为一体。摄影：罗里·嘉丁纳

六层建筑是新加坡的第一个净零能量建筑。摄影：RoryGardiner六层建筑是新加坡的第一个净零能量建筑。摄影：RoryGardine

SDE的目标是以建筑物本身的设计为例，说明如何应对热带地区气候变化的挑战。摄影：罗里·嘉丁纳·SDE(RoryGardinerSDE)的目标是以建筑物本身的设计为例，说明如何应对热带地区气候变化带来的挑战。摄影：罗里·嘉丁纳

建筑师们从当地方言中汲取经验，把目光投向了传统马来人房屋的建造。摄影：罗里·嘉丁纳(Rory Gardiner)从当地方言中汲取线索，建筑师们把目光投向了传统马来人房屋的建造。摄影：罗里·嘉丁纳

这座开放式建筑的设计是为了在潮湿的气候下进行交叉通风。摄影：罗里·嘉丁纳(RoryGardiner)这座开放式建筑的设计是为了在潮湿的气候下进行交叉通风摄影：罗里·嘉丁纳