The project for the new school is conceived as an urban regeneration initiative, aiming to transform a fragmented suburban area into a vibrant new civic center. At the heart of the intervention is the creation of a green public square — an open, lived-in, and shared space that, together with the existing school and new public facilities, forms a new urban hub complementary to the Town Hall.
The guiding concept is to “build the void”, giving form and identity to a currently undefined collective space. The school is designed as a U-shaped courtyard building, inspired by the symmetry and order of neoclassical composition, yet reinterpreted with a contemporary approach, including green roofs, porticoes, and strong connections with the surrounding landscape.
A key architectural feature is the grand entrance arch, an archetypal form that symbolically marks the access point while creating a covered public space. Slightly off-center, it establishes a visual and functional relationship with the existing school and gardens, reinforcing the civic identity of the area.
The project offers a rich variety of spaces for learning, play, and social interaction — all accessible to both students and the broader community. These include porticoes, patios, courtyards, open lawns, sports fields, and school atriums, each with its own distinct character. The teaching spaces are functionally organized along two symmetrical wings, housing 26 square classrooms, each overlooking a dedicated garden designed also for hands-on outdoor activities.
The more public functions — library, canteen, auditorium, gym, and café — are strategically placed to encourage openness and integration with the neighborhood.
The building is designed using modular prefabricated systems, made possible by the geometric clarity of the floorplan. This allows for off-site production with simple, non-specialized technologies, optimizing costs, timelines, and assembly processes.
The primary material is exposed concrete, colored with natural oxides and finished with different textures, offering aesthetic value to a simple, cost-effective material. Insulation is placed internally, bringing both functional and constructional advantages. Large continuous windows break up the solid walls, ensuring bright and open interiors.
The interior design adopts an essential, honest language, using a limited palette of “humble” materials applied on a large scale but executed with care and precision. This approach reflects not only economic and maintenance efficiency but also an ethical principle: doing more with less becomes a true foundation for sustainable design — environmental, economic, and social.
