In addition to teaching and educating young people, schools are increasingly being recognised as places where they learn to live collectively, and develop a sense of citizenship and the ability to share. Such is the case of GYMNASIUM TOLKEWITZ in Dresden.
This new school complex is a large educational centre with classrooms, laboratories, open spaces for recreational and sports activities, and relaxation and rest areas, where students meet and experience everyday situations within their community. The project for the new-build campus was overseen by an architectural collective called ARGE DD-TOL, made up of the Architekturbüro Raum und Bau, Fuchs und Rudolph Architekten Stadtplaner, and Architektengemeinschaft Zimmermann architectural practices, and the construction company Stesad GmbH.
The driving concept behind the project is the separation of academic functions from extracurricular activities, achieved by distributing the buildings around the site in such a way that the possibilities for resuming or continuing social interactions are maintained. The entire 11,400-m² area – comprising a secondary school, a primary school, a sports hall with two- and four-court layouts with associated open areas – was built up with a focus on optimising orientation and minimising environmental impact. All the elements can be clearly distinguished but are also fully integrated into the overall built fabric.
Lighting plays a key role in the project: intelligent artificial lighting that answers the specific needs of an academic setting helps to improve student performance and, by using LEDs, reduces energy consumption. Thanks to the LED solutions from L&L Luce&Light, not only does the new lighting system make the environment brighter, it also contributes to wellbeing and comfort in a space used for learning and concentration, creating an optimal atmosphere. L&L’s Turis 3.0 (15W) and Turis 7.0 (30W) downlights with diffuse light – 4000K colour temperature, the closest to natural light – and a white finish were used throughout the school building, recessed into the ceilings of the corridors and the undersides of the central staircases, in combination with Cube C 1.3 (6W, 4000K, 18° optics) and Teko 7.0 (17W, 3000K diffuse optics) fixtures.
