Kindergarden in Tübingen

After the competition had stipulated another purely residential project, the programme was fundamentally altered as it went ahead: a nursery school for two parallel groups and with external spaces now forms the centre of the complex – with a house for the disabled, a small building for short-term stays and an underground car park – all of which has come to occupy a constricted site in the old town. The 1970s statute on construction styles in the old town governed the design. Even though many committed architects did come out in those days against design regulations of this sort, from today’s viewpoint we regard it as an advantage because it can successfully combine new and old into a harmonious unity. Accordingly, the site’s new housing does, in fact, complement the old town’s structures relatively unobtrusively.

To meet the need for space despite the restricted circumstances, we rounded off the nursery school’s ground plan. We have inserted a round stairwell into the building to serve as the main access connecting the levels. Right at the building’s entrance, the children can see up into the attic. The entry floor and the first floor each accommodate a group, with its main and ancillary rooms. The attic accommodates a space for physical exercise. In front of the entrance is an adjoining building raised on pillars. Here children can take shelter from bad weather while they are waiting outside.

As the building is only partially visible from the street, we decided on bold colours: the base has blue render and the white wood-based panels have yellow battens.