ajlone

Green School in South Africa - a sustainable campus for children to explore nature   Green School South Africa is an 8-hectare sustainable campus designed by GASS Architecture Studio, located in the low-lying Paar Valley in the Western Cape, surrounded by the Paarl Berg mountain in the north. , the Drakenstein Mountains to the east and south, and the Simons Berg to the southwest. In the campus, the space construction forms that appear closely and successively between the buildings are derived from the common shapes in nature, and also ingeniously echo the surrounding local landscapes; the structure of the campus buildings is imitated by mountains. The organic geological appearance more directly symbolizes the PaarlBerg Boulders.   Bringing natural landscape into design thinking to create "organic" space planning The first phase of the "South African Green School" project was completed in February 2021. Buildings with different functions are located between orchards, vegetable gardens, trails, and landscape terraces, including 16 classrooms for students from kindergarten to grade 8, Sangkep ("multifunctional space" in Balinese), administrative building and school center. The individual buildings are woven together through landscaping and a series of organically shaped werf walls to form a coherent whole, with pathways and spaces for students to explore. Upon entering the campus, a landscaped gabion wall leads visitors to the school's administration building, which also connects to more public buildings, including the Sangkep (a multipurpose space), market area, cafeteria, collaboration spaces and the school center , the school center is the central area where all roads meet, the building consists of 3 monolithic shapes, one side of the building houses the dining room, living laboratory and kitchen; the other side contains the library, art and music studios and Toilet facilities. The meandering traffic routes in the school have been carefully designed and ingenious, so that children can feel more surprised and adventurous when walking; while the paths leading to the elementary school and kindergarten extend all the way to the landscaped courtyard, among which the kindergarten area Shaded by landscaped berms, walkways are covered with hand-woven plant galleries.   The combination of landscape and architecture enriches the level and feeling of space The locations of the different areas and buildings were carefully evaluated, taking into account passive house design principles, Feng Shui and the 7 aspects proposed by the "Living Architecture Challenge" to create a harmonious space where people and nature are connected. To further strengthen this concept, the designers also minimized the building wall area to create wider openings and ensure a visual connection between indoors and outdoors. The visual harmony of the building is not only a close connection between the building and nature. All buildings in the green school use local natural building materials, such as mud walls and floors are made of locally harvested clay and soil, and cobblestones recycled from the site are used. Used in the construction of gabion walls, and doors recovered from the "Drakenstein region". These elements allow the building to blend into its surroundings and pay homage to local materials and craftsmanship. Large sail roofs for rainwater collection, thick rammed earth and brick walls, framed openings, oriel windows, skylights for shade and ventilation, and textured barriers , these elements create a fascinating and interesting spatial effect. The combination of landscape and architecture enriches the level of space and user experience, and also provides a field for children to explore and learn.    

Forum Role: Participant

Topics Started: 0

Replies Created: 0