Holy Name of Mary College School Master Plan

Holy Name of Mary College School was built in the 1960s, identifiable by its boxy and inward-focused floor plan. Though the building is nestled within a forest clearing, the campus neglects to effectively engage with the natural environment.

A one-storey community common space with a roof terrace to the southeast corner of the building has been proposed for the school’s renovation. This expansion serves as the new main entrance while terrace acts as a primary outdoor gathering space that overlooks the forest clearing. Within the new common space, the timber screen creates interior shadows that will constantly change with the weather, the seasons, and the position of the sun, making occupants feel they are part of something bigger than themselves. This is a space that is designed to mirror the school’s progressive new pedagogy and mandate, providing a sense of coherence and well-being.

The sweeping veranda communicates the institutional transformation of the school, where attention is being directed towards music, dance, and visual art studies. Its undulating form creates an interplay between the consonance and dissonance in music, where stability and repose coexist with tension. It has tones of a rhythmic heartbeat, a twisting strand of DNA, the logarithmic spiral of a seashell, and the pulsating movements of a dancer.