Kinder Garden
By taking Aldo Van Eyck’s approach to playgrounds as a spatial tool aimed to foster dialog and stimulate community life, this kindergarten is designed to be responsive to the children residing. The fluidity in planning encourages play while the raw form
allows for exploration. Jean Jacques Rousseau believed that children should be able to direct their own activities, free from the constraints imposed by society. The circulation blurs the barrier between the indoor and outdoor spaces, encouraging the children to explore the limitations of their imaginations. Located at the Don Valley in Toronto, Ontario, the kindergarten sits on a sloped site, taking advantage of the incline, to play with the ramped levels of each block.
Advisor: Behnaz Assadi
Process
In understanding the importance of sensory learning for children, I began to play with various materials and textures. I began by melting wax and pouring it into cold water to create an initial organic form. These forms were then cast into plaster and melted away to reveal the negative space within. This concept was carried into the planning of the kindergarden, where the wax became the circulation space, connecting the building blocks to one another.
Ground Level Plan
Implementation
Site Plan