Inspiration

Design Considerations: A nursery school with three different age groups, from 2 year-old to 5 year-old with ample storage, bathrooms and a reception plus an outdoor playground. The space is in the cellar of an existing building on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. The cellar space has limited natural light and also structural columns, gas meters and electric panels that serve the structure above.

Design Approach: Somewhere beneath this area of the city lies the main water supply pipeline that delivers its famous fresh water from upstate. As the project site is almost entirely under ground, we were inspired by the pipeline as a way to navigate the various obstructions throughout the space. We re-conceived the pipeline as a water-slide that begins at the reception area and ends at the playground. We focused on the real users of the space, the children, designing low arches, whiteboard walls, seating nooks and cubbies with drawer fronts they paint themselves.

The playground area serves many purposes, to appeal to all children and whatever frame of mind they may be in. While the kids can jump and run, and climb, there are also areas for building and for reading or singing.