Dezeen Magazine

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso and Paul Le Quernec

Visitors enter this nursery in northeast France through a curving concrete orifice.

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

Architects Michel Grasso and Paul Le Quernec designed the nursery, which is located beside a noisy road in the town of Sarreguemines.

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

The undulating entrance walls lead into a round reception room at the centre of the building.

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

The rest of the nursery is arranged like a human body cell, with classrooms and playrooms encircling this central nucleus.

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

Ceiling heights in these surrounding rooms slope down to just over two metres-high to create a comfortable environment for young children.

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

Rooms around the building’s perimeter open onto sheltered terraces and a surrounding garden.

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

Other nurseries and kindergartens on Dezeen include one with pyramidal chimneys and another with brightly coloured rotating shutterssee more stories about kindergartens here.

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

Photography is by the architects, unless otherwise stated.

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

Here's a short description of the project from Michel Grasso:


Nursery in Sarreguemines (France)

It's with a feeling of total freedom that we designed this project. Our first intention was to provide a protective and protected building, for comfort and safety of children, but also for the tranquility of their parents.

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

Our second intention was to introduce the concept of double standards within the building, the children and adult, because we don't lose sight that it is primarily children who are the main subject of this institution. Finally, our third purpose was to find a way to modify the perception of the building.

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

Indeed, the requirements impose a development on the ground floor of the 1350 square meters of the building...

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

The project was designed as a body cell with its nucleus (the nursery), its cytoplasm (the gardens) and its membrane (the wall closure).

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

The perception of the nursery is a bush of bamboo with small boxes bringing the light into a building with curved lines.

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

The project:
1 350 m2
2 400 000 euro

Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso

Client: Communauté d'Agglomération Sarreguemines Confluences
Architects: Paul Le Quernec & Michel Grasso