A Complementary Relation between Old and New
A ‘school by a school’ project designed by architects Studio Nauta, collaborating with De Zwarte Hond has created an expanded children’s center in the Dutch city of Leeuwarden. The Prins Constantijn primary school and Sinne children’s day care centre come together under one roof. A new volume of 1840m2 extends a 960m2 school building from 1929, which has been adapted. The old building’s brickwork and modernist form in the Amsterdam School architectural style, notable in its stair tower, has been retained.
The project meets contemporary requirements, and accommodates over 200 children throughout the day. Blending existing physical qualities with progressive pedagogical principles, the new building is organised around a number of learning clusters, with spaces for cooperation, play, concentration and peace.
A clear differentiation has been made between fixed and flexible structural and mechanical components, making the building easily adaptable. Due to the ever-changing nature of education, this level of flexibility is key in future proofing the school in a sustainable manner.
Concrete bands mark the volume’s edges and openings, with daylight falling deep into the building through its atrium and a palette of natural woods and hand formed masonry used throughout. A 1929 facade is re-used as an interior wall with windows overlooking the atrium.
The design of the new facades uses the 1929 building as a springboard for a new tectonic language that seeks to form a complementary relation, rather than a contrasting one, between old and new. The renewal of this locally important building looks to establish the new children’s center at the heart of its local community.
Project: School by a School / Location: Leeuwarden, Netherlands / Architects: Studio Nauta, De Zwarte Hond / Project team: De Zwarte Hond / Client: PCBO Leeuwarden, Sinne Kinderopvang, Municipalicty of Leeuwarden / Use: Primary school and nursery / Site area: 3,000m² / Bldg. Area: 1,250m² / Gross floor area: 1,700m² / Completion: 2020 / Photograph: Jordi Huisman
