Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes

  • Street view of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing curved corner volume, rhythmic window bands and recessed Ground floor entrance.
  • Dominique Frelaut School complex in Colombes with stepped terraces, metal walkways, timber façades and planted hanging gardens around the courtyard.
  • Entrance courtyard of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing timber façades, metal canopy on concrete columns, and planted terraces.
  • Interior corridor of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, with striped terracotta block walls, pale timber ceiling and a framed blue end wall.
  • Concrete stairwell at Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, with curved walls, linear wall lights and red handrails lit by filtered daylight.
  • Interior stairwell of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, with red metal mesh balustrades, circular windows and exposed concrete walls.
  • Interior corridor of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, with timber structure, earth brick walls, exposed ducts and glazed classroom fronts.
  • Daylit interior corridor of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, with exposed timber frame, glazed façade, built-in storage and ribbed wall panels.
  • Interior of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing a double-height timber structure, glazed façades, and light-toned wall and ceiling panels.
  • Axonometric diagram of Dominique Frelaut School complex in Colombes, showing U-shaped volumes, stepped planted terraces and contrasting terracotta and timber façades.
    Altitude 35
    Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, U-shaped around a planted courtyard, with terracotta street façades and timber, metal-framed garden terraces
    Gustave Caillebotte
    Historic postcard of Colombes showing the flooded Seine plain, with isolated masonry houses and farm buildings emerging above the high water level.
  • Historic engraving of a vast tiered palace complex with colonnades and roof gardens on a riverfront, framed by a dense classical city and distant hills.
    Process sketch of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing a stepped U-shaped volume with planted terraces rising above a dense urban fabric.
    Historic architectural section drawing of a Paris housing block with central swimming pool, showing detailed floor layouts, structure and basement plant.
  • Axonometric view of Dominique Frelaut School complex in Colombes, showing U-shaped timber frame, stepped terraces and courtyard-facing circulation decks.
    Tectoniques
    BIM axonometric view of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing dense MEP networks and vertical cores within the U-shaped building volume.
    Tectoniques Ingénieurs
  • Construction view of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing scaffolded concrete and timber structure rising above the street hoarding.
    Maxime Verret
    Construction view of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing covered circulation with exposed timber beams on concrete columns and unfinished façades.
    Maxime Verret
    Construction view of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing scaffolded U-shaped volume, circular opening in concrete wall and tower cranes.
    Maxime Verret
    Construction view of Dominique Frelaut School complex in Colombes, showing scaffolded stepped volumes rising above a hedge and lawn under an overcast sky.
    Maxime Verret
  • Site plan of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing U-shaped building around a planted courtyard within a dense urban block.

    Site plan

    N
  • Axonometric drawing of Dominique Frelaut School complex in Colombes, showing U-shaped stepped volumes, central planted courtyard and roof terraces.

    Axonometric view

  • Ground floor plan of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing U-shaped perimeter buildings enclosing a landscaped central courtyard.

    ground floor plan

  • U-shaped floor plan of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing perimeter classrooms, twin circular stairs and a central landscaped courtyard.

    1st floor plan

  • U-shaped floor plan of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing perimeter teaching wings enclosing a central courtyard with circulation and stair cores.

    2nd floor plan

  • U-shaped floor plan of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing perimeter teaching wings enclosing a central courtyard with landscaped zones.

    3rd floor plan

  • U-shaped floor plan of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing perimeter teaching wing enclosing central courtyard and landscaped terraces.

    4th floor plan

  • Technical roof plan of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing U-shaped volume enclosing central courtyard with extensive planted terrace.

    roof plan

  • Longitudinal section of Dominique Frelaut School complex in Colombes, showing stepped terraces, courtyard trees and cross-section of the compact classroom block.

    transverse section

  • Longitudinal section of Dominique Frelaut School complex in Colombes, showing stepped south-facing volumes, terraces with planting and internal circulation cores.

    longitudinal section

  • Longitudinal section of Dominique Frelaut School complex in Colombes, showing stepped south-facing terraces, planted roofs and layered circulation.

    south elevation

  • Elevation drawing of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing stepped south-facing terraces, varied window rhythms and planted roof levels.

    east elevation

  • South elevation of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing stepped U-shaped volume with terraces, regular window grid and planted roofs.

    north elevation

  • Axonometric detail of Dominique Frelaut School Complex in Colombes, showing timber façade, metal canopy structure and layered terraces with planted decks.

    detail axonometric view

Project description

In a dense and heterogeneous urban context, the school adopts a clear form, both monumental and familiar. Laid out in a U-shape along the plot boundaries, the building wraps around the courtyard like a protective enclosure and interweaves architecture and landscape. Its south-facing, stepped silhouette, creates terraces arranged as hanging gardens, offering views over the city. The vertical organisation becomes an opportunity for varied circulation routes. On the city side, terracotta engages with the architectural heritage of the area; in the courtyard, timber façades are paired with a metal structure supporting vegetation.

Download the press kit (.pdf)

Project details

  • Address
    1 allée Agnès Varda, Colombes, Hauts-de-Seine
  • Dates
    2022-2025
  • Programme
    25 classrooms, school cafeteria
  • Surface area
    5,180 m2
  • Budget
    20 M€
  • Regulatory framework
    RE 2020 niveau 2028 – Cep – 30 %
  • Carbon emissions
    744 kgCO2eq/m2
  • Energy consumption
    58.8 kWh/m2/year
  • Labels
    Bâtiment Durable Francilien Or , E3C2
  • Notable details
    Timber post-and-beam structure, composite timber–concrete floor slabs, bio-based insulation, borehole geothermal system, dual-flow ventilation with CO2 sensor, unfired earth brick, green flat roof
  • Selected media

Credits

  • Client
    Eco urbain pour la ville de Colombes
  • Project management
    Tectoniques (architect), Altitude 35 (landscape architect), Tectoniques Ingénieurs (cost consultant, MEP engineering, timber structure, concrete structure), eEgenie (sustainability consultant), Biodiversita (ecologist), Gamba (acoustic consultant), PK (kitchen designer), Ivoire (roads and utilities), SPK (fire safety systems)
  • Contractors
    Maître Cube (general contractor, lead)
  • Photography
    Maxime Verret

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