MONTESSORI SCHOOL

Den Haag (NL)

Montessori school Waalsdorp has been given a new building in the 1930s residential area of Benoordenhout. The building fits well in the neighborhood, but also has its own distinctive look. The spatial, flexible inner world offers the school an optimal accommodation for its Montessori education. The façade is made of masonry with a strong profiling, a special connection and a different brick size. Striking vertical ribs mark the main entrance on the front side.

The length and a clear, deep yellow color are the two striking characteristics of the new Hagemeister project sorting 'Bonn'. Hagemeister developed this customized facing bricks together with architects of the firm De Zwarte Hond.

The bricks are baked according to the coal burning technique, from a traditional recipe of various clays. This gives the 'Bonn' its intensive and clear lemon-yellow color and gives the sorting its characteristic accents and sintering. Project architect Bart van Kampen wanted a sorting in a size and color that matched the surrounding brick architecture from the Interbellum. The gray-brown jointing in the facades also underlines the deep yellow of the Hagemeister grading. To make the masonry look a bit more raw, 15 percent of the bricks were laid with the back to the front.

The school building won the BNA prize Best Building of the Year in 2015 in the Stimulating environments category.
(source: architectenweb.nl)

Gevelsteen: „Bonn”
Architect: Bart van Kampen – De Zwarte Hond
Photos: Ulrich Metelmann
Supplier: Hagemeister GmbH & Co. KG