A glass wall spotted with reflective yellow and orange windows produces a false facade for this extension to a secondary school in south-west Germany, created by Netzwerk Architekten .
Darmstadt-primarily based studio Netzwerk Architekten won a competition to style the €4.2 million (£3.one million) extension for the Fichte-Gymnasium grammar college in Karlsruhe, a city near the France-Germany border. The three-storey block supplies a new dining hall, foyer and extra classrooms for the college of 850 pupils.
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A glazed display erected in front of the concrete structure gives privacy for the street-dealing with side of the block. A smattering of square windows coated in golden foil reflect the facades of the school’s neighbours – developed in the Wilhelminian style employed in Germany close to the flip of the 20th century. One corner of the new concrete building is minimize away, permitting light to pass by way of the glass and into a playground.
“In the street facade, ribbon windows with coloured inner glazing interact with framed casement windows, picking up and interpreting the theme of the perforated facades of the Wilhelminian buildings,” stated the architects.
“In the rhythm of the exercise zones, ‘lookout windows’ with deep alcoves at prominent spots offer a focused see of the urban space,” the architects extra.
A strip of transparent glazing at ground level produces a “display window” into the college foyer and dining hall, which is accessed by way of a glazed door in the west of the facade. A passageway reduce via the eastern corner of the building supplies a direct route to the playground.
Within, a temporary wall between the foyer and dining space can be eliminated to generate a more substantial space for performances.
A wide set of wooden measures prospects from the foyer into the major stairwell, which is lit by a huge skylight. Toilets and support rooms are found on the landings of the split-level staircase, although a partial basement is positioned underneath.
The block backs onto a paved playground dotted with wooden planters that double as seats. An irregular pattern of square windows tasks from the white-plastered facade.
The windows have deep frames that type alcove seating along the corridors and in the classrooms.
“Coloured glass panels are embedded on the corridor side, providing the corridors with various shades of colour depending on the place of the sun,” explained the architects.
Photography is by Jörg Hempel.
Task credits:
Architecture: netzwerkarchitekten GmbH
Assistance construction: Dr. Kreutz+Partner, Nuremberg, Germany
Electrical: IBE Ingenieurbüro Elektrotechnik GmbH, Karlsruhe, Germany
Building providers/vitality: S&K Engineering, Schefflenz, Germany
Task manager: Niklas Storch
Associates: Uwe Neumeyer, Matthias Walter
Location program 
Ground floor program 
Very first floor strategy 
Second floor plan 
Area Dezeen
