Description

The Colegio Hontanares is a medium-scale project in a beautiful and sparsely inhabited mountainous area towards the south-east of Medellin. The private school, serving 350 students, sits on a generous site in a decidedly rural location with a steep and irregular topography which, therefore, required a different approach. In order to tackle the complex topography, the architects studied the solutions advanced by the Tayrona culture, an indigenous group that inhabited the Sierra Nevada near the Caribbean coast of Colombia. The Sierra Nevada is an isolated mountain range (it does not belong to the Andes) which rises from an average altitude of 200 metres above sea level at the foothills to approximately 5700 metres at the top (it is the highest mountain in Colombia and the world’s highest coastal range). As a result, the sierra covers virtually all existing climates and eco-systems, which make it a propitious place to live. On the other hand, the abrupt topography required its inhabitants to develop strategies to adapt the land for both occupation and agriculture. The Tayronas developed a sophisticated system of terraces which followed the contours of the topography in order to facilitate the cultivation and irrigation of crops, as well as the farming of animals. Plan B Arquitectos (Felipe Mesa and Alejandro Bernal) complemented their study of Tayrona land occupation strategies with analyses of Chinese rural architectures which also employ methods of terracing for agricultural purposes.

Following their research, Plan B Arquitectos proposed to organise the school on a single narrow linear terrace following the contour lines. This strategy minimises environmental damage and forces the deployment of the project over the entire site, so that it is possible to benefit from a variety of natural conditions and views.

The architects identified four areas on the site: the central plateau, the western hill, the eastern hill and the north-eastern fringe at the bottom of the site. The central plateau is the largest – and only – area of flat land. It is located almost at the centre of the site with views in all directions. For that reason, it was planned as a forecourt and the main public space of the school, the space for weekly assemblies and special events.

The non-academic items of the programme (administration, teachers’ room, etc.) are built around the perimeter of the forecourt but sit 4 metres below it. That way, the building does not interrupt the views and its roof becomes an extension of the upper forecourt into the horizon. The western hill, which is long and gentle, houses the classrooms for the smaller children and the workshops. In turn, the classrooms for students attending the secondary school are located on the eastern hill. This part of the site is narrower, steeper and more secluded, so it is a conducive environment for students who need to concentrate more in order to perform their academic tasks. The remaining part of the site has been articulated by a network of pathways which, like the Tayronas did, generate a succession of terraces at different levels for the cultivation of fruits, an activity students are encouraged to pursue.

The circulation system is simple and unambiguous yet joyful due to the constantly varying views. It consists of a weaving corridor in front of the classrooms which is covered by a concrete canopy. In turn, the canopy doubles as a transitional space between interior and exterior. While the general layout of the building follows the contours of the topography, the rectangular classrooms are orientated in the north-south direction. That way they avoid direct incidence of sunlight, which is carefully controlled by north-facing high windows. The sections reveal an interesting interplay of scales: circulations are relatively shallow, classrooms are high and offices – as well as other non-academic spaces – remain at an intermediate height. The transition between these different scales is emphasised by a series of thresholds which highlight the different spatial characteristics of each part of the school.

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Originally published in: Felipe Hernández, Beyond Modernist Masters. Contemporary Architecture in Latin America, Birkhäuser, 2009.