![[Univeristy of East Anglia]](../images/g/gb-uea.gif)
by Ivan Sache, 4 September 2004
Last modified: 2010-07-16 by rob raeside
Keywords: norwich | norfolk | east anglia |
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by Ivan Sache, 4 September 2004
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The
homepage of the University of East Anglia (UEA), Norwich, says:
"UEA admitted its first 87 undergraduate students – in English Studies and
Biological Sciences in 1963. People in Norwich had begun to talk about setting
up a university in the city as long ago as last century, but it wasn’t until
1960, as the post-war ‘bulge’ generation was bringing about an expansion in
higher education, that the University of East Anglia finally got the go-ahead.
UEA’s academic thinking was distinctive from the word go. The choice of ‘Do
Different’ as the University’s motto was a deliberate signal that it was going
to look at new ways of providing university education. At the heart of UEA
innovative thinking was the principle of interdisciplinarity – that is, where
related subjects are studied in combination with each other – and that principle
shaped the setting up of the Schools of Studies. UEA has continued to be
academically innovative throughout its development: recently, for instance, we
were one of the first universities in Britain to introduce a modular, semester
system for degree courses, providing even more flexible ways for students to
combine units of teaching towards a degree.
The city had donated what was the Earlham municipal golf course for the site of
the campus, and traces of the fairways can still be seen around the grounds
today. In 1962, Denys Lasdun (who designed the National Theatre) was appointed
as UEA’s founding architect, and was asked to produce an integrated physical
design which would reflect and complement the academic structure. It was Lasdun
who designed the University’s core buildings including the monumental Teaching
Wall, the raised walkways, the central Square and, most famously, the striking
‘ziggurats’ of Norfolk and Suffolk Terrace. His plan was that no building on
campus should be more than five minutes’ walk away from any other – an intention
that has been honoured as far as possible despite the building expansion over
the last 10 years.
Lasdun’s legacy also includes the acronym ‘UEA’, now enshrined in the
University’s logo, as that is how he designated it in his early plans and
drawings. The University motto ‘Do Different’ comes from the old Norfolk saying,
“people in Norfolk do things different”. The Coat of Arms records the
University’s association with East Anglia, the City of Norwich and the first
Chancellor, Lord Mackintosh.
The most striking, and perhaps best known, of all of Lasdun’s contributions to
UEA was the pyramidal residential accommodation for students which he called
‘Ziggurats’ (after a type of pyramidal temple tower built in ancient
Mesopotamia). The Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, designed by Sir Norman
Foster, opened in 1978 following the gift of Sir Robert and Lisa Sainsbury’s
magnificent art collection. The Crescent Wing was added in 1991. The Sainsbury
Centre has won international acclaim for the breadth and quality of its
exhibitions, as well as many architectural awards."
UEA has a coat of arms and a flag. The flag is hoisted over the big tower
dominating the main building of the university. The description of the coat of
arms is the following: "The University motto ‘Do Different’ comes from the old
Norfolk saying, “people in Norfolk do things different”. The Coat of Arms
records the University’s association with East Anglia, the City of Norwich and
the first Chancellor, Lord Mackintosh." The flag is a banner of arms: it shows
on a blue field a white castle above three yellow crowns. The flag is very
similar to the flag of Norwich, recalled by the Norman castle. The three crowns
on blue are the traditional arms of East Anglia, which are identical to the
lesser arms of Sweden, from where the East Anglian royal dynasty, the Wuffingas,
were supposed to have originated. As for the municipal flag of Norwich, the
design of the charges on the flag is simplified compared with the coat of arms.
Ivan Sache, 4 September 2004
