Civic Architects has renovated the Gorlaeus Lecture Hall in Leiden, The Netherlands.

The Gorlaeus Laboratoria and lecture hall were built in the second half of the 20th century, as the starting signal for the development of a modern knowledge campus for the University of Leiden.

The now outdated lecture hall has been renovated according to the principles of bioclimatic design and transformed into an education and meeting centre with work and study spaces, a restaurant for 400 people and four lecture and event rooms with 250 to 700 seats.

The ambitions of Leiden University played a role on different levels; firstly, improving the energy performance of the badly insulated original building; secondly, re-imagining the building within its surroundings as an inviting public learning centre on the campus; thirdly, renovating the building while it remained in use, resulting in complex construction phasing with big prefabricated facade segments.

This project has been longlisted in the education project category of Dezeen Awards 2025.

Studio: Civic Architects
Project: Gorlaeus Lecture Hall Leiden
Credits: Van Dijke BV, Halmos & EFPC, Vitruvius Bouwkostenadvies and Vijverborgh