Colégio dos Plátanos

Portuguese firm Murmuro expanded and reorganized a school in Sintra, Portugal, for children between 3 and 14 years old. Having acquired a set of low quality buildings east of the existing complex, the school intended to demolish a few of them, expanding the core complex eastwards, adding a series of new classrooms, complementary spaces and sport facilities.

  The new building is simultaneously a connection and articulation point: it links the east and west buildings and articulates the levels of the south outdoor courtyard, the sports area and a covered outdoor area. The use of natural ventilation and protection of the northern openings was a must requirement. The architects then decided to create a permeable brick facade to allow air flow, illumination in the northern rooms and window protection, hiding the ventilation grids. To the south exterior shading slabs and interior screens were used in order to control the light intensity in the classrooms.

Finishings were a key topic: the preschool classrooms were covered in cheerful, bright coloured panels, and the walls were also coated with a material that simultaneously allowed acoustic conditioning and the display of the children’s works.

Colégio dos Plátanos, Sintra, Portugal
Program: school, addition
Architects: Murmuro
Team: João Caldas, Rita Breda, Tiago Araújo, Pedro Rodrigues, Francisco Calheiros
Design: Inês Oliveira
Engineering: TDP Engenharia
Area: 1,850 sqm
Completion: 2017