Futura Primary and Kindergarten, Ascoli Satriano, Italy, 2023
Third Prize

Inserted in the context of a broader project, which involves the demo-reconstruction of 192 school buildings throughout the italian territory, the project involves the urban regeneration of a village located in the municipality of Ascoli Satriano. The brief require to establish 3 nursery school  sections  and 5 elementary school sections. The school is seen as a civic center that acts as a pivot on which to build the local community, hosting not only educational functions, but becoming an open space where activities, initiatives and individuals can meet. For this reason the project starts from the design of the external square aiming  to transform it into a 25 hours equipped area. A new "agora" where collective activities can be carried out with the aim of becoming an element of social cohesion and integration.

From an architectural point of view, the project recomposes the southern front of the building, overlooking the access square, proposing an element of the Mediterranean architectural tradition, namely the portico. This is reinterpreted in a contemporary key through the use of parametric technologies and the creation of a solar responsive facade, capable of more or less screening the windows based on the position of the sun during the hours of the day. Its efficiency is tested through analysis tools that determine the quantity of light and energy entering the environment, with the aim of regulating consumption and visual and internal thermal comfort.

Architectural and compositional needs come together in the proposed porch, it refers to educational theories developed by Bruno Munari. For Munari, there are cognitive variants that stimulate the child's creativity through the understanding of shape, opacity, transparency and scale. Those elements  are welcomed by the geometric design of the facade and the square, which act as a pedagogical element, with the aim of accompanying the child's inner growth, approaching Steinerian thought.

The internal space is also designed to guarantee a multiplicity of uses and to adapt to the needs of the local community. The inclusion of movable walls allows to join spaces into larger areas and  implement activities different than strictly educational ones such as: exhibitions, conferences, meetings, workshops. At the same time, the adaptability and flexibility of the internal space is functional to satisfying the multiple needs of the school community, which may arise over time due to changes in surrounding conditions.