JAVIER MOSQUERA GONZALEZ Architects
PUBLIC SCHOOL
Type: Open international competition.
Location: Mallorca. Spain.
Year: 2008.
Program: Education building.
Size: 1.290m2
A singular space is proposed within the future residential urban plot. The enclosed space aims to isolate the child from the aggressions of the outside world. Inside this place the child is the protagonist. To the outside it appears like a stony wall, that remembers to the vernacular constructions of the tapiales. The massive character aims to endow the whole unit with the surrounding heterogeneity. Only a metallic element breaks the perimeter created, generating the access point to the building, from Castella la Manxa street. In an act of kindness, reach out to the citizen to access the interior of a special world.
The vegetation plays a basic role in the proposal. A perimeter formed by rows of deciduous trees serves as a second filter towards the building. The plant margin serves as a garden area for the project, as well as a playground and a place to explore and discover for the child. Three perimeter strips arranged in swastika are organized, leaving a fourth without trees but with low vegetation facing northwest. The building is located in the center of the plot, protected by vegetation.
In a single plant the whole set is organized. Vertical routes are not necessary to control children if specific areas are properly arranged. The children's spaces are separated by a main hall, shared by the teaching staff and others. Once the child accesses his classroom, he becomes part of a world designed specifically for him.
The proposal is divided into three parts, united through a common roof, formed by solar panels and plant elements, the "horizontal facade" of the building. These are: service area and special classrooms, area of general classrooms and area of external classrooms. The building is organized around the perimeter vegetation and the interior playground, located in the center of the plot, in the heart of the building. It is the safest point of the project. The child is protected from the outside, surrounded by trees and varied play areas.
The service area and special classrooms are organized in a continuous strip oriented to the northwest with a common front open to a garden area. The management and teaching areas are located near the access point and in direct relation with the general classrooms. The special classrooms are organized so that the route between them and the common classrooms is the minimum possible. The kitchen and other service units of the project are located at the furthest point from the classrooms, next to the loading and unloading access on Seville Street.
The general classrooms, connected directly to the patio through a practicable glass enclosure, have southeast orientation, looking for sunlight in cold periods. In summer, it is nuanced thanks to the deciduous vegetation and the protection generated by the porch that forms the covered ambulatory. They are grouped together, sharing a service nucleus. Each of them is characterized by a different color, which appears reflected in vertical walls and ceiling. The ground becomes the place of the child's play, a fantastic place where he will live many adventures.
The outer classrooms are located under the roof, surrounded by the covered ambulatory. They enjoy a protected space and the playground of the building, as well as all the surrounding perimeter vegetation. The module used by these classrooms coincides with the service area of the general classrooms, foreseeing a future expansion of the center, so that by creating the pre-installation of the necessary elements in this first phase, we bet on a controlled growth of the center. Like the general classrooms, the lacquer of Trespa type panels distinguishes each one of the classrooms. The pavement that forms the covered ambulatory is realized through a cutting of rubber elements.