Hunter Building, Lauriston Place, Edinburgh

The Hunter Building was designed by Sir Anthony Wheeler of the architectural practice Wheeler and Sproson, with construction taking place between 1972 and 1976. The building officially opened on 20 June 1977. It is located on Lauriston Place within the Edinburgh College of Art campus, occupying a site formerly used for tenements shown on early 20th-century Ordnance Survey maps.

The building has an L-shaped plan composed of two four-storey blocks—one aligned east-west and one aligned north-south—with the north-south block including a basement level. Together they enclose the south and east sides of a landscaped courtyard, creating a quadrangle with other college buildings on the site. The north elevation is attached to the former architecture building (not listed).

Construction is of reinforced concrete frame with exterior walls clad in smooth ashlar red Locharbriggs sandstone. The sandstone cladding is a dominant design feature, particularly on the Lauriston Place elevation, where it is punctuated by small window openings at each floor. Window openings at the ground and fourth floors are arranged in pairs, while continuous clerestory windows at the second and third floors wrap around to the west elevation. The fourth floor is slightly advanced, exposing the concrete floorplate. Two recessed entrance bays interrupt the facade: one off-centre to the right with a straight flight of steps and flat canopy over the doors, and another to the far left with a flat-arched pend opening giving access to the central courtyard. The sandstone cladding is inscribed "EDINBURGH COLLEGE OF ART HUNTER BUILDING" to the right of the left-hand pend.

The Keir Street elevation features continuous horizontal strip windows at the second, third, and fourth floors, with floor-to-ceiling glazing in the bays to the left of the third floor. The ground floor has small, narrow windows and a continuous clerestory above a chamfered band course. A recessed section extends from ground to third floor with full-height glazing, while steps to the right lead down to a basement area enclosed by a wall.

The courtyard elevations have continuous horizontal strip windows at all floors except the basement, which features narrow continuous clerestory windows. The ground floor and basement are slightly advanced, and ground floor windows in the west elevation are floor-to-ceiling, indicating the location of the café. A recessed section on the north elevation extends from ground to third floor with full-height glazing.

The interior contains predominantly studio and workshop spaces accessed from a central corridor, arranged as open plan or subdivided spaces as originally intended. A coffered waffle ceiling runs throughout the building, though in some rooms it is obscured by suspended ceilings. Original stairs are retained but have been altered with later screens covering the balustrade. Standard fixtures and fittings from the date of construction remain in place. The large canteen area underwent comprehensive refurbishment in 2015.

The design choices reflect the college's practical requirements. The building was needed to address overcrowding in the main 1907 building and provide specialist facilities for artists beyond the painting school, as well as improved communal services including library and dining facilities. An earlier scheme by architect Peter Womersley (1968-9) had proposed an ambitious network of sprawling concrete blocks with linking bridges and projections occupying most of the plot. However, this design was rejected primarily on thermal control grounds: the large south-facing windows threatened extreme overheating requiring costly air-conditioning. Wheeler's scheme, particularly the south elevation with its expanse of wall punctuated by small windows, directly addressed these concerns.

Over the past decade, the building has undergone minor alterations. Window cill details were modified to address water ingress problems that had caused stonework to spall. The interior has been refurbished, most notably in the café and entrance hall, and the original library space on the ground floor has been relocated to another building.