Notre Dame De La Treille Choristers School, Lille Part 1 Project 2006 Andy Usher University of Kent | UK This is a building that draws on discreet similarities with its neighbour, the Notre Dame De La Treille cathedral. In appearance the extreme polarities of architectural styles but when considered closer, two of a kind in celebrating a common cause, religion through medium of music. These buildings both deal with very complex issues only this celebrated in very different ways.The cathedral’s highly decorative gothic revival style is enhanced by the modest appearance of the highly rational chorister’s school. The two almost compliment and strengthen the presence of one another. The school is conscious but content that it sits in the shadow of the cathedral and at no point does it attempt to take anything away from its neighbour. From afar the Choristers school is read almost as a thin ribbon of pavilion that unravels into an open air auditorium as you draw closer. Andy’s Third Year at Kent has been spent, to a large extent, in the workshop. He has explored both his design projects and his Interdisciplinary Option (a sculpted walk connecting the University to views of the Cathedral below) through the medium of three-dimensional work. In his final design project he looked at the area surrounding the cathedral in Lille. He proposed an effortless cranked strip of a building accommodating the choir school. The scheme formed both a focused arena-like public space with the cathedral as backdrop, as well as improving pedestrian permeability with the old town. Simple, but not simplistic.