Akshar Arbol International, T.Nagar
An international school for 450 students on a tight site of 1475 sqm in the heart of the city required very efficient planning. There were seventeen trees on site that were retained, including two of them within the footprint.
Location
Size
T.Nagar, Chennai
1475 Sq. mt
2024
. After leaving a 6m offset on all sides the rectangular footprint has the classrooms and allied programmes along the periphery. The walkways and passages inside transform into public spaces, amphitheatrical spaces and interactive volumes thus magnifying the spatial experience inside. Apart from the trees along the site edge, a lattice of brick piers shades the glazed walls of the rooms from the sun.
The design challenge was to maximise natural light and ventilation in the classrooms while keeping out the heat and glare of the sun. The longer sides of the building face North and South – the latter being the ambient wind direction. As the sun moves from East to West, the wall needs constant vertical shading.
A vertical lattice of brick piers rising from a concrete nib provides shade to the windows set behind by 450mm. Every classroom has a deep-set floor to ceiling view panel shaded by a thin walled GFRC jamb.
