Larvik 1-10 School WIN!

VA / Cebra / Østengen & Bergo win in Larvik

“Relativity” is a school where movement throughout the building is an experience for the senses with varied spatial experiences in the common areas. A school with a clear relationship and reference to it’s site. A school with an organisation that is readable and easy to orient yourself in. A place where students can interact with their peers and inspire each other across classes. “Relativity” is a place where the students have both common venues for extrovert activity, and specialized spaces for diverse learning experiences and introverted study.

The education areas are cleanly arranged with a degree of generality that allows for different furnishings and interior concepts. In this way the teaching areas can be further developed together with the building users without having to change the overall building form or concept. The flexibility of the classrooms also allows for future changes in teaching style of philosophy as necessary. “Relativity” is a school designed for classroom-teaching, group work, project workgroups, and independent study. It contains a diversity of niches and workspaces that allow for short stops or long working sessions, for discussion, work, and informal meetings. The school is designed to stimulate play and experience connected to curiosity and concentration. These are the prerequisites to create a good learning environment.

Unlike a typical atrium school where an introverted central space is surrounded in plan by functions with and only has light from above. “Relativity”‘s central space is placed against the outer wall to create an exciting extroverted room that contains all the school’s vertical communication and good connections to the common functions. The central room gives students good visual contact with the school’s playground area, making them also a part of the school’s inner life. The central space is not only the heart of the school, but also of the local community.

“Relativity” turns the atrium school concept on it’s edge to give the central space a connection to the world outside. This creates better daylight conditions while maintaining the synergies of placing the common functions around the center. “Relativity” is a school with good internal communication and visual contact between the specialized study rooms and the classrooms. This new Hybrid between an “atrium” and “corridor” schools contains the best qualities of both typologies. A school which is unique for Larvik and designed around the user’s room program and functional specifications. The project is based on an idea of a compact building with a minimal footprint. This reduces the foundation costs while considering the neighbors and keeping the biggest possible recreational space for the pupils. This way of thinking has led to a new building type we like to call “the vertical campus”.

 

The first project meeting is scheduled for late April. Various Architects look forward to continuing our collaboration with CEBRA and working closely with Østengen & Bergo to realize this project.

 

Hand sketches by Mikkel Frost of CEBRA.

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