Competition entry with Paul Eis
The St. Peter / Au school campus, consisting of a primary school, a middle school, a pre-vocational school and a sports hall, is culturally enriched with a library, a music school and a music rehearsal hall.
We keep the old fire station, which becomes the landmark of the campus, and give it a new function as the library. Taking the existing roof truss into account, parts of the intermediate floor are removed to create a generous, open space with a sculptural seating staircase at its centre. The bookshelves are on wheels, so the library and seating staircase can become an event space.
Set apart from it, the monolithic new building houses the music school and the rehearsal hall, nestling against the existing gym. The building follows the principles of “simple building”, with single-leaf solid external walls and floors and internal walls in timber construction.
Between the two buildings a shared entrance is formed, connecting both the new functions and the existing schools (NMS and PTS). Placing the new building creates a central courtyard at the heart of the ensemble, framed by a free-form walkway with warm and cold spaces that creates clear connections between the different functions.
