When I started designing the external appearance of the kindergarten, it was important for me to find some kind of idea, concept. First of all, I started from the layout, what image does this building evoke in me? If we simplify it into components, then we have a block of public premises in the center and separate group premises are adjacent to it along the contour of the ellipse. And this layout caused me to associate the stem with petals. This is where the “Petal” concept came from.
The Petal shape symbolizes the natural development of life. The central block has a more curvilinear shape and seems to invite you to come inside. There are many public spaces where it was difficult to find the right rhythm of the windows, so I used this technique here with protruding slats that give this volume integrity. And as for the external appearance, the central part is made in response to wooden architecture. This again echoes the concept of a stem, a tree trunk.
Group. As I already said, our group spaces are organized around a central core, resembling a stem, from which petals radiate out in the form of individual building volumes. What did we do with the group ones? We rounded one of the corners to maintain the curvilinearity of the central part and soften the volume and make it less aggressive. Window. We now have separate two-story arches in the window pattern, which make the volume smaller for children. Also, group roofs are made at different angles and offsets. This entire structure, as a whole, visually emphasizes unity and diversity, similar to how each petal gives uniqueness to a flower. In my opinion, it is a rather original building, with its own identity, with its own face.
And there is a slightly philosophical interpretation of why the petal. And I decided to look at children through the prism of this concept. Children are like small particles of nature, each of which, like a petal, carries a unique potential. When we talk about schools or kindergartens, these are not just buildings, but a living space in which children, like flowers, reveal their beauty and become part of the amazing garden of life.
