Gekko

Text description provided by architect.

The project was obtained through a competition. The architect is Gianni Cito. At the time of the competition entry and the building design he was co-founder and architect of Dok Architecten.

With this growing group of 8 architects/urbanist/interior architects Moke is involved in school designs, large inner city housing schemes, the renovation and extension of a museum, two shopping centers and urban plans.

The kids will grow up in an environment where both the presence and past are present. The old cityhall of Bonheiden is transformed into the entrance lobby and contains all administrative functions.

Kids enter the new school through the stylish former city hall, a picturesque building and one of the few remaining old buildings in the town of Bonheiden.

This old building is connected to the new school building building via a 'cloister’. The ‘cloister’ lies around the courtyard and provides access to all rooms.

The resultant of this ensemble of old and new buildings is an exiting and safe environment for small kids to play and learn.

All classrooms, the central hall and the sports facilities are allocated in the new building. The building has a shed roof, that provides northern light and very high spaces.

The classrooms have entresol floors that make use of the height of the spaces. The classes also have very long and low windows.

Most furniture is integrated in the architecture. Classrooms have furniture walls in lively colors, they contain all storage and a kitchenette. The facade between the cloister and the courtyard is indeed a big shelf system and contains besides shelves also drawers and cupboards. The facade becomes a vitrine that shows childrens’ work.