20 - Boulogne-Billancourt school complex

20 - Boulogne-Billancourt school complex - Studio Muoto - 2018

28 Rue Yves Kermen, Boulogne-Billancourt

In 2018, Studio Muoto realized the urban and architectural project of the Boulogne-Billancourt School complex. The school group is inserted in a contrasting urban context on a triangular satellite plot of the ZAC Rive de Seine.

The school’s volume is drawn like a crenellated skyline that defines different built profiles along the streets that border it. This composite form finds a homogeneity in the treatment of the steel facades whose surfaces are finely striated, and reinterprets in a contemporary way the historical architecture of the industrial site. The curved blades in shades of blue play with the natural light. The iridescent reflections undulating with the sun constantly modify the perception of the building. All the first floors are glazed, creating an urban relationship on an urban scale. The kindergarten and elementary schools share the first two levels. The last level is dedicated to digital spaces open to the inhabitants of the neighborhood. The kindergarten has a patio courtyard and the elementary school has a terrace courtyard. These two courtyards face south and are protected from the neighborhood. The gymnasium located in the bow of the building has a double access, from the school group and from the street. When the school is closed, it functions as a facility open to the public, which can be transformed into a concert hall or a neighborhood cinema.

The spatial organization defines a compact building, with obvious entrances and clear circulations. The building is situated on former cars factories, so its aesthetic identity refers to the shift from the former industrial economy of the site to the digital era, as the pedagogic program of the school is defined around the introduction of connected technologies. The project responds to the double challenge of display and visibility of a public facility within the city of Boulogne, while maintaining a friendly relationship with the housing buildings to the north.