Kindergarten “Am Schlatt” in Lustenau
Two generations of timber construction - one kindergarten.
The new kindergarten wing starts at the northern flight of the existing building by Burkhalter-Sumi Architects and continues it as a single-storey structure. This creates a generous arrival side as the first meeting room. The low-lying windows of the access areas create an atmospheric relationship between the interior and exterior.
The three new groups are located along the spacious, polyvalently playable corridor, and it is closed off by the movement area. At the beginning of this sequence of rooms, the dining room, together with the administration rooms, is directed towards the newly created, courtyard-like outdoor area and forms the social center of the kindergarten.
The heart of each group is an individually playable outside room at the transition to the garden, around which the group and alternative room are arranged to form a coherent functional unit. This additional living room and play room can be shaded as an atmospherically appealing space vessel by means of a horizontal awning. While the corridors and side zones are based on the existing room height, the significant elevation of the group and outside rooms creates a new spatial quality.
While the corridors and side zones are based on the existing room height, the significant elevation of the group and outside rooms creates a new spatial quality. Without trying to ingratiate itself with the existing structure, the project takes over defining architectural elements and develops them further in a playful way. Varying to the two-dimensional linings of the existing structure, the new building is made of solid wood surfaces that give structure. As a constructive timber structure, the project has a certain static simplicity.
Visible beams made of local woods and prefabricated external wall elements not only allow a short construction period, but also give the new rooms a robust, studio-like character. In this way, the existing and the expansion are transformed into a new whole.
The perception of the existing structure varies between a subdivided whole and a whole made up of parts. A new body is added to the existing structure - henceforth the head of the ensemble. In its semantics, this is close to the spirit of the stock. However, through fine nuances - and that seems central - this retains its independence as part of the whole.
