The school is a social structure, a venue for meetings and socialization for the inhabitants. In the smaller towns, the schools represent all of this; it is a facility where children are educated and adults take part in community life. This is what happens in Wahroonga, a town in Australia with no extraordinary acclaim. The project to modernize the Preparatory School (for preschool Under-6s) was designed by studio GGF Architects. The Wahroonga Preparatory School was founded alongside the Neo-Gothic Uniting Church; constructed in the Sixties, the school required considerable restoration, interventions to the structural aspects,
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to the plant systems and to the esthetics. The primary objective of Studio GGF was to transform the school into somewhere more welcoming; the yellow-brown paintwork and the visible bricks have been replaced by a number of colored panels that alternate with rectangular windows to guarantee the penetration of natural light and appropriate air-exchange inside. These add a defining touch to the ensemble. The colors were carefully chosen and were inspired by some of the details in the Uniting Church windows. A rainbow of colors brightens the façade in yellows, blues, greens and reds, energizing the saints’ robes, the religious symbols and the skies above the sacred works.
The same colors were used in the furnishings; the original white desks, the Formica rostrum and the neon lights have made way for brightly colored desks and design lamps. The ground floor has also been re-organized in a rational manner to exploit the available space. The dimensions of the corridors were reduced to a minimum, and ten classrooms resulted, split over three floors, a large hall dedicated to music and other art-based activities, and a library. Given the importance of the environment, the children will be taught the importance of energy saving and protection of the environment; the building will therefore be fitted with some special
features. Firstly, solar panels to produce all of the energy necessary for the school and the nearby church; another design feature to reduce the energy consumption was the north-facing orientation of the classrooms (given that the school is in the southern hemisphere) and the air recycling system. It was a wonderful project, the perfect example of how a tired, sadly dated building can be revived.
На этой странице: некоторые внутренние помещения: библиотека, кухня, учебное помещение. Мебель современная, цветная, некоторые предметы меблировки выполнены по заказу. Цветовая палитра повторяет яркие краски фасада – этот прием помогает внести ощущение радости в место, посвященное учебному процессу.
On this page: some of the amenities inside, such as the library, the kitchen and the study hall. The furnishings are modern and highly colored, some custom-made for the spaces. The range of colors were inspired by the bright colors of the facades, adding a touch of joy and happiness to a temple of education and learning.