#PUBLIC ARCHITECTURE PROJECTS
Sou fujimoto to build new learning center at paris' ecole polytechnique
A distinguished team headed by japanese architect sou fujimoto has been selected to complete the new learning center of paris’ ecole polytechnique.
The building, which was designed alongside manal rachdi OXO architectes and nicolas laisné associés, brings together six educational and research institutions as part of one overall scheme. as a symbol of the union of the six schools, all of which belong to the paris-saclay university, the learning center becomes a point of convergence – an extension of the adjacent landscaping project.
Once built, the 10,000 square meter complex will host 150 members of staff and welcome 2,000 students. in addition to several lecture halls and numerous classrooms, dedicated teaching spaces will be created, with videoconferencing areas and collaborative work spaces placing a focus on interactivity and digital tools.
Relaxation areas, including the on-site cafeteria, spill out onto a linear park, continuing the sense of flexibility that permeates the design. simultaneously, this natural landscape filters back inside the school. a wide atrium is inhabited by light vegetation, while a series of walkways and staircases create numerous informal spaces for teachers, students and visitors to meet or work. consequently, occupants won’t pass each other in corridors, but meet in vivid places bathed in soft light that offer with surprising and changing views.
The learning center, which is scheduled to open by the end of 2018, forms part of the french capital’s paris-saclay district – a research and a business cluster currently under construction in the south of the city. the campus is to be served by the future train line 18 of the grand paris express.
