The School In The Landscape

My project is an investigation of spaces for learning in relation to the landscape, creating new typologies and exploring the new spatial qualities they create in relation to each other and to the natural surroundings of the site.

School In The Landscape is located in the village of Vanvikan, by Trondheimsfjorden on the Norwegian coast. The local municipality has already decided to build a new school in the center of the village. To challenge this, I have chosen a site six minutes walking west of the village center. Site: The terrain stretches up from the fjord in the south to the main road. It is 250 meters in length and elevating in 50 meters. Three streams and a smaller river runs through the site. The river is accompanied by a row of great hardwood trees. To the far east of the site there are bergs and rocks coming up from the ground, defining the steepest slopes in the landscape. To the west are fields of grass and reed, while the center of the site is inhabited by beautiful trees. The southern edge meets the sea with beaches and boulders. The site can be accessed by the main road, by boat or by foot along the shoreline. What: The School In The Landscape consists of 18 identities. Each identity has its own way of functioning. There is Arcade - the communication line of the school. Teachers House, the house for the teachers. Then there is the different types of acclimatized classrooms. Tree House - the space for creative work. Flounder - where pupils do writing by hand. Temple - the largest space that can turn into smaller spaces. Armadillo - the space for individual work. Sea house - where biology is taught. Cuckoo's Nest - where students can work undisturbed isolated in huts in the cliffs. There are unacclimatized classrooms as well, which are spaces for education in the open air and in direct relation with the nature. There is Ziggy, Stone Garden, Shelter, Sun Bench, Sun Watch, Bridge, Coastal Stair, Portal and Amphi. These different spaces for teaching are spread out in the landscape.