Primarschule Wiesental
The school is set orthogonally within its site, open towards the natural landscape of the Lorze river valley. The campus arrangement disentangles programmatic functions while preserving the communal idea of a school as a shared place.
All buildings orient towards the centre, which is occupied by a single-storey, slightly sunken forum — a glazed hub that provides orientation, public identity, and daily access to the shared auditorium and library.
The covered perimeter of the forum creates a variety of outdoor rooms for all pupils. Depending on orientation, these spaces either bring different age groups together or allow them their own territory for play and gathering.
In section, the structural system is a biaxial timber truss spanning 35 × 50 metres, giving the school its spatial character and its capacity for future adaptation. Earth-contacting elements are built in recycled concrete; above ground, the construction is pure timber. Non-load-bearing walls allow the floor plan to respond flexibly to changing pedagogical requirements.
Roof lights between the classroom and group-room zones create focused, naturally lit individual learning areas that invite open and self-directed learning. A hall-height slatted timber wall acts as a spatial filter between the circulation spine and the exhibition and transit zone.
