Elementary School Komorany | XTOPIX Architects

On the edge of the city, on the way to the forest, at the interface between buildings and nature, there is a school that teaches us how to learn, how to perceive the world and the surroundings around us, and how to grow up to heights that are not measured in centimeters. The school rises to the slope. The forest comes close to it. Encounters and explorations: sun, water, trees, air - life. Outside and inside. During classes or in the free time. Daily supply of new experiences and knowledge.

 The new school of Komořany is located on a northern sloping plot adjacent to the forest at the edge of Prague. We perceive the plot as a connecting transition between the forest and the new public infrastructure - a transition between the wild and the cultivated.

The new building responds to the morphology of the plot. We connect the individual floors to the adjacent height levels of the surrounding terrain and neighboring streets. We use the maximum of the dramatic elevation - immersing the building to the terrain we cover the volume of the new school. Three volumes with the same footprint are set on top of each other, cascading towards the forest and therefore creating the residential roofs.

We place the school as close to the eastern edge of the plot as possible. Towards the northwest, we create a recessed entrance corner. By doing so we define the gathering place under the oaks for pupils - a school piazzetta made of coloured permeable concrete, which allows chalk drawing and children's games. 

At the western border of the plot along Horkého Street, we create a green strip with bays - a school garden. The wild character of the forest penetrates this zone together with the path of the water. 

The ground floor of the building is dedicated to functions that mix with the public - an entrance lobby, dining room and library with study rooms. Beyond the entrance lobby is the most dominant space of the school - a covered atrium with stair seating. During big school events, the covered atrium can be connected variably to the adjacent cafeteria, lobby, and large gym.

The whole house is united by a habitable communication axis. The axis rises through the stair seating to the play area connected to the gym and outdoor atrium.

The highest part of the school and also the closest part to the forest consists of the technical classrooms and the sports department of the school. This section also has its own entrance, which could be used by the public. The sports department consists of two gymnasiums and a sports field located one above the other.

A significant element of the building is the facade made of recycled material. The KLP panels are made of recycled plastic. This product for exterior facades is maintenance-free, weather resistant and recyclable. On the facade will be used around 80 tonnes of recyclate.

We plan to use a Czech invention - Rebeton. A recycled concrete that uses building rubble and nano-mixtures instead of natural aggregate.

The drainage will be carried out according to the principles of rainwater management. There is a forest above the elementary school property, from which drainage will lead through the plot to a nearby stream. Stormwater will cascade through the retention basins

.The landscape is conceptually designed to contrast between the natural area around the school and on the rooftops with the urban character of the entry area. Komořany is located on the border between the open countryside and the city, where the forest is the greatest natural feature of the area. In the proposal, the forest descends smoothly around the school building and along the roofscape into the valley. In terms of species, we work with the natural vegetation of oak groves, which represent domestic oaks, hornbeams and babyka maple.

In contrast with the forest part is the entry piazzetta with an urban character designed for gathering. The red oaks will be prominent here with their autumn colouring, underplanted beds with ornamental grasses and perennials.

A safe school front is an important criterion. For this reason, we propose traffic calming with a raised roadway in the street at the school entrance.

The world of Komořany Elementary School is a world full of diverse environments and various characters, which encourage not only students to discover and learn.

Architecture Firm: XTOPIX (www.xtopix.cz)

Status: 1st prize in architectural competition        

Design Team: Martin Málek, Pavel Buryška, Barbora Buryšková, Lucie Lorencová, 

Michal Štěpař, Michal Rešetár, Ondřej Fiedler, Lada Chromelová, Martin Černý

Client: Prague 12

Engineering: AED

Landscape: Land05

Collaborators: Květoslav Syrový, Jiří Vítek, Jakub Zajíček

Visualization: Jan Drška