Ecca collection

College André Maurois

One of the driving forces in French school design and redesign has been the disastrous fire at the College Edouard Pailleron in 1973.Built to a mid century pattern common to many schools throughout the country, it was of lightweight steel construction with no fire protection. The fire spread rapidly through voids and 20 people died of whom 16 were children.   There were more than 1,000 schools in the country built in a similar way, of which 57 used the exact same technique. These became known as Paillerons and were, quite rightly, slated for improvement or replacement.

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Bilbao Arena

Architectural practice ACXT admits that local geology and vegetation were both influential in the design of the striking Bilbao Arena and Sports Centre, which occupies a steeply inclined site, within a park, in the city’s central Miribilla district.

Images courtesy of Jorge Allende and Aitor Ortiz

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Arcus College

The new campus of the Arcus College in Heerlen, in the southeast Netherlands is a regional provider of vocational training for the Limburg province. It was designed, says architect IAA Architecten, “to meet the challenges of contemporary vocational education, anticipating future developments in this field and creating an optimised learning environment for a new generation of students”. 

Photography: Little Planet www.littleplanet.be

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