Nestled into the verdant, sloping landscape of Ondřejov, Czech Republic, the new Frič Brothers Elementary School stands as a testament to thoughtful community collaboration and progressive educational architecture. Designed by Prague-based practice ATELIER 6, this joint municipal project for 540 pupils transcends mere functionality, becoming a pedagogical tool and a harmonious addition to its village context. Replacing a grazing meadow adjacent to a football field, the school emerges as a cluster of sensitively scaled volumes, embodying sustainable design principles and fostering a unique connection to its surroundings and namesake astronomers.
Avoiding a monolithic presence, the school is deftly split into three primary structures linked by a lower connective element. One wing caters to younger pupils, housing general classrooms, art and music rooms, a library, and after-school spaces. The second, for older students, contains standard and six specialized classrooms, a cafeteria with food service, and administrative offices. The third volume, strategically partly embedded into the slope, accommodates the sports hall. The linking structure provides a welcoming entrance foyer, a vestibule, and crucially, a covered outdoor area used for breaks and informal teaching in warmer months, seamlessly blending indoor and outdoor learning.
Sustainability is deeply embedded in the school’s DNA. Constructed to rigorous passive house standards, the building achieves exceptional energy efficiency. Ground-source heat pumps harness energy from twenty boreholes drilled 140 meters deep behind the building. Ventilation relies on mechanical systems with heat recovery, complemented by operable windows throughout for occupant-controlled fresh air. A masterstroke is the integration of north-facing skylights along the central corridors. These serve a triple function: flooding the core with natural daylight, enabling passive ventilation, and supporting photovoltaic panels on their south-facing slopes, actively contributing to the school’s energy needs.
Perhaps the most striking conceptual move is the building’s role as a “textbook.” ATELIER 6 deliberately left the building’s systems exposed: ventilation ducts, heating pipes, water pipes, sewage lines, and electrical conduits run visibly through the corridors. This transparency, revealing the “veins, arteries, airways, and intestines” of the structure, turns circulation spaces into impromptu learning environments. The exposed reinforced concrete structure further underscores this raw, honest aesthetic.
Acoustic comfort was paramount. Beyond standard classroom treatment, suspended circular panelsadorn corridors and the cafeteria, absorbing sound from both sides. Their form subtly evokes the night sky, a theme deeply woven into the school’s identity. This astronomical connection, honoring the Frič brothers and the nearby Ondřejov Observatory, is amplified by the comprehensive visual identity and signage system developed by HMS Design (Filip Heyduk). The school’s logo is derived from the constellation under which the brothers were born, informing all pictograms throughout the building.
Collaboration extended to artist Pavla Gregorová Šípová for the interior design. Floors become canvases: social spaces feature comic-style speech bubbles, while the entrance foyer showcases a stylized star whose rays extend into corridors and classrooms. Classroom floors use vibrant colours for younger pupils and muted tones for older students. Furniture, mostly white or wood-toned, provides a calm backdrop, with colour accents strategically placed in seating and storage. The sports hallbalances functionality and warmth with wooden trusses, acoustic wall panels, and exposed concrete.
The transformation of the site is comprehensive. A narrow path became a fully equipped access road with Kiss & Ride parking, a bus stop, and shared parking for the school and adjacent TJ Sokol Ondřejov sports complex. The forecourt, paved in granite and centered around a linden tree with a circular bench, offers a generous welcome. Externally, brick slips clad the main façades, breaking down scale, while the sports hall and covered area feature a warm white-gray render. Distinctive green accents on windows and fencing nod to the observatory.
The Frič Brothers Elementary School is more than infrastructure; it’s a statement about the future of educational architecture. By prioritizing sustainability, embracing transparency as pedagogy, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration with artists and graphic designers, and sensitively integrating into the Ondřejov landscape, ATELIER 6 has created a beacon of learning designed to inspire generations to come.