A hybrid interior leading the way into the future
The Lassus Campus in Zwolle provides education to pupils aged 10 to 18. With the help of BDG Architects and Gispen, the college created a new building that perfectly matches their educational vision of today and that of the future. A hybrid design that will still be functional and stylish fifty years from now. Tom Versteeg, director of the Lassus Campus: 'Gispen thought along with us in all respects and tackled all areas: from classrooms and study plazas to conference rooms, offices and the teachers' lounge.'
Gispen was involved in the project from the very start. 'Interior designer Astrid Ebbers and account manager Harold Hermans developed a concept that suited our future vision for education,' recalls director Tom Versteeg. Harold adds: 'In all interim decisions, we kept the final plan for the new Lassus Campus in mind.' The project set off in 2017. Harold: 'We selected furniture that the Lassus Campus could use in both the old and the new building.'
Tom: 'Everything that our staff, students and parents can conceive should be possible in our building. This is why we introduced as much flexibility as possible. Through Gispen's furniture, for example, which allows us to switch between a great many teaching delivery modes.'
Astrid adds: 'The furniture selection includes organically-shaped tables and instruction desks. At such a table, everybody feels acknowledged and equal. The Gispen JUNA coach seats provide a relaxing atmosphere: they offer a proper seating position, but you can also read a book in them with one leg over the other. The students and teachers can also use the high tables and sit-stand desks for a change in seating dynamics.
'All classrooms open onto a learning plaza with furniture that corresponds to the furniture in the classrooms. Teachers have so many more options at their disposal,' Tom explains. 'There is even a learning plaza centred around all the classrooms with adjacent sliding doors. When you slide everything open, it creates what we call the Alfa Square, which can accommodate four hundred students.'
Each domain has been given its own design language of shapes and colours. Where one domain contains more organically-shaped furniture, the other has a more angular and linear character. Routes 10 to 14 for the younger students are characterised by shades of green and purple, whereas more natural colours have been chosen for the education route ‘Mens&’. The teachers' lounge features a barista-style interior with warm hues.
Tom: 'The new building is truly a school by and for the pupils. They helped define the learning plazas and these have been in constant use from the start. Pupils even tend to stay until half past five.' The teachers' lounge is also a popular spot. 'Teachers sit down with a cup of coffee on a quad seat or relax in an easy chair. It is a meeting place for staff with a warm atmosphere. And that also benefits education.'
Photography: Studio de Zwarte Kater
Clip: Sherman Emers
Education is evolving at a rapid pace. A future-proof learning environment requires a different interior layout than it would three years ago. We aim to assist our clients in realising this for their organisations. The Lassus Campus, for example, was transformed from a traditional classroom layout to a hybrid learning environment. The open study plazas have been equipped with both group setups and individual workstations. We accommodate whatever preference each individual user may have: from active seating solutions and soft seating to sit-stand solutions.
In addition to seating and standing furniture, we also installed INLINE educational cabinets in the learning environment. These cabinets are customisable and come with either sliding or hinged doors. Working together with Tom Versteeg was very straightforward. We have the same standards when it comes to quality and share the same principles. Tom explained what was required for the Lassus Campus and we, in turn, offered honest advice. The trust that was built there was great.
THE LAYOUT HAS BEEN PERFECTLY MATCHED THANKS TO THE INTEGRAL COOPERATION WITH GISPEN AND THE ARCHITECT
Working with Gispen is doing so as partners rather than as client and supplier. We sometimes spoke to Astrid Ebbers and Harold Hermans twice a day. Together, we brought the visions of the educational routes to life. We were consulted on furniture, wall coverings and lighting down to the last detail.
The key to the success of this project was the integral cooperation between the builders, installers, the interior designer and the architect. We succeeded in the idea of tackling this project in phases, spreading it over a number of years. This allowed us to already make use of the future-oriented school furniture at the old building, and then bringing it with us when we relocated.
Every single project is unique. We would be happy to explore the perfect learning environment for your organisation.
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