educational Archives

Architectural Details: Why Metal Is the Perfect Material for Dynamic Educational Projects

As designers imagine the future of educational buildings, the values and materials of today will inform school environments for decades to come. With priorities around durability, longevity, cost-efficiency, and ease of installation, metal plays a starring role in high-traffic education spaces.

For its renewability, durability, and ever-evolving versatility, architectural metal offers long-term solutions that bring beauty, reliability and safety to schools. At Presidio Knolls School in San Francisco, and the Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences in Seattle, Washington, leading metal manufacturer BŌK Modern’s solutions have set a new standard for how educational spaces are designed and experienced.

Presidio Knolls School. Photo by Ken Gutmaker

Nestled in San Francisco’s SoMa District, Presidio Knolls School is a serene escape from the bustling city. Studio Bondy Architecture was tasked with renovating the PKS campus, including two historic buildings and the main U-Wing building containing the interior courtyard.

The team wanted to design a new public-facing identity while creating a safe, enduring environment for kindergarten through eighth-grade students. They called on BŌK Modern to design custom metal treatments for the building’s exterior façade, front gate, interior stairs, and balcony guardrails to strike that balance.

Presidio Knolls School. Photo by Kevin Quach

The distinctive element of the façade and interior courtyard is the perforated metal screen used across all solutions. The pattern is based on a Chinese ice-ray design, a common motif in wood lattice window designs in the Ming and Qing Dynasties,” says Laura Rambin, Principal at Studio Bondy Architecture. “On the street-facing façade, the pattern decreases in density as it rises to the third story of the building, giving a feeling of lightness. Within the interior courtyard, the pattern creates dynamic shadows and has the effect of standing in a bamboo forest.”

Presidio Knolls School. Photo by Kevin Quach

Designing patterns for kid-centric environments can be challenging, so BŌK and Studio Bondy Architecture carefully selected a pattern that didn’t prohibit climbing but naturally discouraged them from doing so. The custom ice-ray design also has holes too small for toes and feet to fit, and narrow vertical openings prevent anyone from crawling through.

Seattle Academy of Arts & Sciences. Photo by Rachel Godbe

In the common areas of the Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences’ new STREAM building, The Miller Hull Partnership tapped BŌK Modern to collaborate on guardrails, stairs, and louver covers for the school’s interior. The fun and open patterning, combined with a consistent look, helped to unify the space for students and faculty alike.

Seattle Academy of Arts & Sciences. Photo by Rachel Godbe

Turning structural staircases into textural focal points, BŌK Modern fabricated their panels from 14GA steel with a primer and powder-coated finish for durability. Specified in the A26 pattern across all solutions, the finished products elevate the staircases beyond essential elements of the complex while letting the student’s art installations shine.

Providing architects and designers with endless possibilities to create engaging and resilient educational environments that can withstand the test of time, architectural metal provides sustainable, cost-saving solutions that will be part of a school’s identity for decades to come. Inspiring creativity and enhancing learning, BŌK Modern’s educational projects embrace metal materials as catalysts for resilient structures and compelling design.

To see more architectural case studies and learn more about how metal could be utilized in your next project, visit BŌK Modern’s website.

Credits & Key Information

Presidio Knolls School

Architect / Designer: Studio Bondy Architecture
Contractor: Plant
Construction Photography: Ken Gutmaker and Kevin Quach
Location: San Francisco, CA
Product Type: Wallscreen, Stair Guardrail, Gate, Balcony Guardrail

Seattle Academy of Arts & Sciences

Architect / Designer: Miller Hull General
Contractor: GLY Construction
Photography: Rachel Godbe
Product Type: Stair Guardrail, Balcony Guardrail, Louver Cover
Location: Seattle, WA

Reference

Architecture

A Journey of Movement and Form: Inner Mongolia’s Sculpture Research Center

By Zarkon Group,07/04/2023

Inner Mongolia Normal University Sculpture Research Center – The project, which covers an area of 6,000 square meters, mainly functions as a sculpture workshop for research and development and production of various types of sculptures (stone, wood, copper, iron, plastic, leather, jade and pottery). It also has the functions of teaching, communication, exhibition and negotiation, and trading, etc. The creativity of the design is to establish the relationship between space and feeling.

Architizer chatted with Zhang Pengju at INNER MONGOLIAN GRAND ARCHITECTURE DESIGN CO., LTD. to learn more about this project.

Architizer: What inspired the initial concept for your design?

Zhang Pengju: The initial design concept came from the moving line of users entering the site, the organization structure guided by which established a series of overall orders in terms of form, space and structure, including: a movement line order that conforms to the relationship of the site, a form order that conforms to the functional needs, a structure order that conforms to the logic of construction, and a time order that conforms to the feeling of site. At the same time, it also further guides the selection of materials in line with the spatial temperament and the lighting strategy in line with the physical logic.

© INNER MONGOLIAN GRAND ARCHITECTURE DESIGN CO.， LTD.

This project won in the 10th Annual A+Awards! What do you believe are the standout components that made your project win?

At the core are construction, materials, low cost, light, and their interrelation. In the design, light steel was selected as the main structure and recycled concrete blocks served as the wall enclosure space. As both the structure and finishing, the block material expresses the sense of authenticity, achieves durability, and at the same time costs less. The design introduces sky light into the interior, maximizing the expression of the rough and natural block material and the hard and frank steel structure, reinforcing the feeling of a constant and natural site.

What was the greatest design challenge you faced during the project, and how did you navigate it?

The greatest design challenge was to create an artistic and infectious spatial character. The design laid the foundation of the spatial character by means of spatial staging and enclosure, such as the staging of the space with axial guidance and dynamic variations; the enclosure was completed with the enclosing form of the entrance and the interior light environment; the design also strengthened this spatial character with the attributes of authenticity and purity, such as the authenticity of the materials and the construction. At the same time, the materials, construction, light and shadow also strive to express purity.

Inner Mongolia Normal University Sculpture Research Center Gallery

Reference

Architecture

Questioning the Meaning of Urban Campus: The Sciences Po Campus by Moreau Kusunoki

By Zarkon Group,14/03/2023

Sciences Po – The new campus of Sciences Po questions the meaning of being located in a city, as opposed to the proliferation of new campuses that have been built in a suburban environment. As an urban campus enmeshed within the fabric of the city, the centerpiece of Moreau Kusunoki’s design is the central pavilion located in the main courtyard. Inspired by the concept of a ‘pavillon de thé’, the glass-paneled structure represents both a refuge and transparency by the unique continuity of its innovative pivoting façade, seamlessly transitioning from inside to outside. This new technology has made it possible to create a safe and secure facility that simultaneously acts as a symbol of openness to the world.

Architizer chatted with Hiroko Kusunoki and Nicolas Moreau, co-founders of Moreau Kusunoki, to learn more about this project.

Architizer: What inspired the initial concept for your design?

Hiroko Kusunoki and Nicolas Moreau: The project was inspired by a historical understanding of the site and a reaction to its physical givens, as inherited and as found. Nested within the innermost courtyard of an old convent turned campus, the project formally establishes itself as a new focal point, all while nurturing a calm and respectful conversation with its limestone surroundings.

This project won in the 10th Annual A+Awards! What do you believe are the standout components that made your project win?

The pavilion offers the unique experience of becoming synchronized with exterior spaces when all the large pivoting doors are opened. It removes the interiority of the space and becomes a pure stage, exposed to the wind, light and sounds of the city.

What was the greatest design challenge you faced during the project, and how did you navigate it?

The pavilion is designed based on the broad palette of grays reflected through different materialities: steel, concrete, paint, glass, the Paris sky. The uniformity of the tone of gray offers abstraction and silence. These subtle nuances create a form of micro visual vibration within the space, providing an extra layer of quiet, sensorial appreciation when approached closely or touched.

How did the context of your project — environmental, social or cultural — influence your design?

The fluidity of people coming in and out of the location, the levelling of human interaction, are the real opportunities provided by this new campus. As opposed to simply continuing the tradition and history of Sciences Po, people are encouraged to reimagine the school’s image.

How important was sustainability as a design criteria as you worked on this project?

Sustainability is a fundamental driver of this project. In spite of a fully glazed façade, the design succeeds at instilling a solid level of comfort by providing the option of using natural ventilation. The canopies play a fundamental role in protection from solar radiation while also conferring the architectural identity of the pavilion.

How have your clients responded to the finished project?

The pavilion became the “showcase” of the new Sciences Po campus, inspiring the most important donors to the project to install their offices in the pavilion.

How do you believe this project represents you or your firm as a whole?

This project demonstrates our commitment to the integrity of our architectural concept, which is defined by readability, simplicity, as well as duality.

How do you imagine this project influencing your work in the future?

Every project provides an opportunity to try things out, to find prototypes. We will continue collaborating with builders to develop unique façade systems that allow for improved interaction and continuity between interior and exterior spaces.

Team Members

Architects : Moreau Kusunoki, Wilmotte & Associates (coordination), Pierre Bortolussi (heritage). Partners: Groupe Sogelym Dixence (promoter), Franck Boutté Consultants (sustainable engineering), Mugo (landscaping), Barbanel (MEP), TERRELL Group (façade engineering), SASAKI (strategy and urban planning), CORELO (project management). Client: La Fondation Nationale des Sciences Politiques (FNSP)

Sciences Po Gallery

Reference

Sustainable News

An educational tool for farmers doubles as an online marketplace

By Zarkon Group,01/08/202212/08/2022

Spotted: Digitisation has impacted every corner of our global economy, but one sector that remains largely un-digitised is the world’s oldest: agriculture. Farmers are the bedrock of the €6 trillion agriculture and food trade market, yet they make the least profit of all the main players in the food value chain. Moreover, many farmers still use the same techniques as their ancestors and lack access to the information they need to implement profit-boosting innovations. A new platform, Wikifarmer, is attempting to tackle these challenges.

Wikifarmer seeks to improve the lot of farmers in two ways. The platform is an international online resource for agricultural information and technological developments. The library offers thousands of user-generated articles, all for free, covering a huge diversity of topics, including the latest technology information and guidelines for best practices around the world. The Wikifarmer team provides localised translations of articles into 15 languages.

The platform also acts as a global farmer’s market. For shoppers, this marketplace provides a direct link to food producers in every region. With purchases covered by a money-back guarantee, shoppers can search a long list of products and contact the company itself for personalised quotes for specific requests or high-volume orders.

For farmers, the marketplace represents a welcome simplification of the food supply chain. Selling directly to consumers means that farmers can avoid commissions paid to the multitude of intermediaries they must normally deal with. So far, around 30,000 products have been listed on the site, and more than 5,000 customers have bought products directly from farmers.

From clean energy for off-grid communities to safe herbicide development, agtech is a hot area of innovation. Springwise has previously covered other innovations that aim to connect farmers directly to marketplaces, such as one focused on smallholder farmers in Ghana.

Written by: Keely Khoury

1st August 2022

Email: info@wikifarmer.com

Website: wikifarmer.com

Reference

Sustainable News

Gulmeshwori Basic School // MESH Architectures

By Zarkon Group,28/07/202212/08/2022

Kids of Kathmandu, an NGO that builds schools in Nepal, recruited MESH to build a new school building for 5-7th graders on a scenic site in the hills outside the city. The organization is committed to sustainable construction, and resources were severely limited by budget, site accessibility, and general material scarcity.

They had had a successful experience with rammed earth and proposed it for the building. MESH eagerly accepted the challenge.Nepalese pedagogy is recognizable as traditional, rote lesson delivery to orderly rows of students crowded into desks. In part to encourage alternative classroom organization and also in response to the open surroundings, we proposed an organization of hexagonal rooms: 3 classrooms, a computer room, and a library.

We added a covered porch as an outdoor space usable during the monsoon and an outdoor plinth to be used as a stage for gatherings, connected by stair to a green recreational roof.

This makes for a variety of spaces within a small footprint. A loose organization of heterogenous spaces like this keeps the mind open and active by continually rewriting the mind’s model of its surroundings.

Rammed earth has a low energy/CO2 footprint because most of the mass comes from the site itself, with a small amount of cement added.

Otherwise, it functions much like reinforced concrete, with thermal mass to modulate temperature, structural strength, and fire resistance..

Gulmeshwori Basic School Gallery

Reference

educational

Architectural Details: Why Metal Is the Perfect Material for Dynamic Educational Projects

Credits & Key Information

A Journey of Movement and Form: Inner Mongolia’s Sculpture Research Center

Inner Mongolia Normal University Sculpture Research Center Gallery

Questioning the Meaning of Urban Campus: The Sciences Po Campus by Moreau Kusunoki

Sciences Po Gallery

An educational tool for farmers doubles as an online marketplace

Gulmeshwori Basic School // MESH Architectures

Gulmeshwori Basic School Gallery

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