When the school is in the range of 20,000 to 30,000 square meters, it is a relatively ideal state. It has a space blur generated by the scale, but is not threatened by traffic efficiency. Our consistent strategy is to create spatial transparency through relationship redundancy to meet the diverse lives of students.
Zhaohui Rong Studio
The school’s entrance plaza, the activity space for ground-floor classrooms, the extension of the internal gymnasium, the traffic transition of the second-floor space, the open library, the school’s assembly place… The superimposition of multiple relationships makes the space exhibit full redundancy, making the definition of the entrance gray space very ambiguous. It is a multi-functional hall, serving not only as a passage but more as a place for exhibition, activities, and communication.
Placing the gymnasium as a public space in the center is the school’s main feature, maximizing the public nature of the gymnasium space. The sectional design of the gymnasium lowers the elevation of the interior field to -3m, creating a better interaction between the entrance space and the gymnasium, and internal activities become part of the school’s display. At the same time, the gymnasium and the underground garage form a very friendly interface, making the gymnasium the center for picking up and dropping off children from the entire school. The handling of top lighting not only illuminates the gymnasium but also brings rich changes in lighting to the interior.
A climbable three-dimensional platform covers the lower part of the gymnasium and the entrance gray space, becoming a paradise for upper-level students. Every level of students has access to a 10-minute activity space during breaks. The rooftop platform retreats from the middle to the sides, naturally forming an observation deck facing the westward landscape belt and a grandstand facing the eastward city. The interactive relationships with these external environments will also become important memories for the students during their time at school.
The intervention of the central gymnasium naturally eliminates the annoying 25m spacing regulations in the school, demonstrating a strong sense of unity and presenting different spatial qualities under conventional normative constraints. The best way to address the issue is to make the problem fundamentally non-existent. The spacing between north and south classrooms and the gymnasium is transformed into sunlight gaps.
The large side corridor outside the north and south classrooms transforms into a more vibrant quasi-atrium space. The school is not divided into arranged surveillance spaces by the 25m regulations, reducing the inevitable north-south traffic corridors. The entire school exhibits a strong sense of unity.
The cafeteria, auditorium, and entrance ramp wrap around the central core space on the north and south sides of the building. Creating tranquil courtyards distinguishes the central space, providing students with more spatial experiences during their time at school.
Wenqi Road Elementary School continues our consistent design approach of presenting internal spaces in the facade. The combination of spaces forms a real and virtual relationship in the facade, and the technical treatment of construction creates details in the architectural facade. The design fully conforms to the spatial aspects, aligning perfectly with the height of the space.
Therefore, the facade expression of Wenqi Road Elementary School strongly conveys the characteristics of sectional architecture in the east-west direction of the building, with the repeated displacement of the balconies on the north and south classrooms becoming another important element.
Wenqi Road Primary School, starting from relationship redundancy, has created a school with a highly composite spatial structure. We have always believed that school buildings should not be produced like machines to generate standard products but should be containers to catalyze infinite possibilities for the future.
Zhaohui Rong Studio
Photo
Bowen Hou
