KALA Offices / Subjects Objects
Text description provided by the architects. In a context characterized by transformed or completely replaced industrial buildings, the project preserves and extends by one floor the existing HEAD-Geneva (School of Arts and Design) building, built by architect Jean Erb in 1948 and classified as 20th century heritage.th century.
The extra floor of 800m2 contains workshops, classrooms and offices. It adopts a simple, orthogonal and free plan whose specificity lies in the modification of the existing structural rhythm. Thereby, the new layout frees itself from corridors and offers a generous and coherent living space.
The extension is organized under a large metallic frame, which gives rhythm to the interior. The project is defined by a perimeter, a simple boundary that draws generic, efficient and flexible spaces. The rationality of the project is changed by precise moments where a few controlled irregularities are to be found.
A sculptural staircase is installed in the full-height cavity, which marks the main entrance to the building. The technical elements traverse the space freely and sometimes impose their proper logic on the whole. A disc gorge is carefully placed on the east facade. A column intended to absorb the loads of the metal frame in the event of fire remains buoyant.
The extra floor has the ambition to both be read in the continuity of the existing building, and as an independent volume. A box within which lies a series of exceptions, specificities, fireworks.
