Marlène Jobert nursery school, Épinay-sur-Seine.

The pine trees at the northwestern corner of this site form a gateway into the site.
The pine grove brings people together and locals are free to meet up here. It gives onto a succession of patios, lawns, green roofs, pines, other trees and plant-covered partitions that create a transitional landscape. The building itself hovers between two layers of forest, one indoors, the other outdoors. Reflective annealed stainless steel elements blur the distinction between building and landscape that leads us to dream of faraway places and to learn. Rough and smooth, matt and shiny; the building offers children and visitors alike an ‘educational’ experience based on the five senses and using natural light without ever going over the top with colour. This nursery school is as simple and ‘powerful’ as an abstraction. It invites users in and carries them away.