The concept for this school begins from four main ideas:
1. Gallery-School:
Given the cold and rainy weather, the school is organized along a glass-covered gallery that provides shelter and thermal confort. You access this boulevard that is also the main building that distributes to the rest of the establishment.
2. Program:
Inside the main building are all the classes for middle school and high school. Also there is the administrative area on the first floor, and the main entrance.
3. Symbology and formal shape:
The specific activities such as the gym, dining hall, workshops and elementary school are located in separate buildings that are visible from the east facade. This buildings are are the milestones of the project: modern reinterpretation from the "ruca" Mapuche.
As the tallest milestone, the project proposes a reinterpretation of the "rehue" Mapuche, a tall totem-like volume which is the gathering point in the main quad.
4. Materials and Sustainability:
The materials used are all locally obtained. For the main building the project proposes a wooden structure based with beams and columns. According to the Panguipulli Ordinance, we propose a volcanic stone base were the wooden structure is supported.
For the "ruca" volumes is a similar type of structure that is coated with native wooden shingles.
The orientation of the school is from North to South were all the classes are facing the Northeast and the gallery to the Northwest. To control the direct sunlight in the classroom we proposed a brise-soleil on the Eastern face. The gallery contains heat during sunny winter days and during the summer the temperature is controlled by openings on the ceiling that generate controlled ventilation.
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