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By José Freire da Silva, Parque Escolar, Portugal
At this seminar two world-renowned school architects presented their visions of schools.
On 20 May, Lisbon was host to an international seminar on school architecture. “Making School” was organised by Parque Escolar, a semi-private agency responsible for a secondary schools modernisation programme. Of particular interest were presentations made by two world-renowned school architects: Manuel Tainha and Herman Herzberger.
Manuel Tainha is an IUA award and Valmor prize winner and professor of architecture. Tainha retraced the highlights of his career since his first challenge in the 1950s to create a new model of primary school where he explored the concept of repetition. One of his recent designs is the Lisbon Faculty of Psychology and Sciences of Education. Here, the duality of public and private spaces is expressed through the use of formal and informal materials and the organisation of pathways. According to Tainha, architecture is not only an aesthetic and technical activity but is also ethical. We might not be aware of the ethical dimension, but it is imprinted in what we do. From an educational point of view, architecture does not determine behaviour patterns, but it fosters them.
Herman Hertzberger can be considered as one of the main drivers behind the 1960s Dutch structuralist movement. He believes that the architect’s role is not to provide a complete product but a spatial framework to be eventually completed by its users. Among his best-known buildings is the first Montessori school in Delft, which is still a reference today.
H. Hertzberger described his vision of life inside the school. For him, the concept of classroom and corridor is no longer valid. What we need now is glass panels and corridors with spaces where people can work and meet. All areas must serve as learning spaces, and the articulation of space is fundamental. He assimilates the school with both a home and a city, so in his designs he incorporates the concept of main street, “eating street” and “learning street”. He considers that the success of this concept lies in finding the right elements and proportions. In all his projects he includes small spaces that give a sense of being in a protected area.
Given that throughout the world practically every monument’s steps are also used as informal seating areas, this can apply to multiple contexts, including inside the school. He is therefore fond of the concept of an enlarged hole in the floor of social spaces with steps on several sides. Another element that he favours is the use of zenithal light which helps to create street-like quality.
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Presikhaven multifunctional centre, Arnhem, the Netherlands
© Herman Hertzberger
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Another theme that H. Herzberger developed was that of open space buildings versus complex programmed building. The latter become outdated very quickly, while open spaces allow buildings to evolve. He described two complexes which had been deviated from their initial function with success. In fact, the only opponents of open space in buildings are fire departments who stress at the lack of closed spaces and fire doors…
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De Eilanden Montessori School, Amsterdam. Architect: Herman Hertzberger
© Margreet van der Woude
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The architect, he argued, cannot predict the dynamics of tomorrow’s society, so buildings must be able to adapt. And when spaces’ functions can be modified – he cited the example of new pre-school waiting areas – this can contribute to social cohesion. When asked how he reconciles the use of novel elements as described above with stringent building regulations which can suffocate innovation, “I am an architect of the impossible” replied Mr. Hertzberger.
For more information, contact:
José Freire da Silva
Parque Escolar, EPE
Av. Infante Santo, nº 2 – 7º piso
1350-178 Lisbon
Portugal
E-mail: jose.freire@parque-escolar.min-edu.pt
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