The large double-height windows of the agoras are signs intended to be read from afar. Visible from the Passerelle de l'Arche, from the U Arena or from the D914, their transparency opens up the school's common spaces to the outside world and "lets passers-by see" the school's life. Oriented towards La Défense, these openings give a direct view of the park of the Puteaux cemetery which the building overlooks. At night, the relationship is reversed and this diaphaneity between the school and the city enlivens the new Aimé Césaire urban boulevard.

The organisation of the interior spaces was designed to encourage and promote interaction between students, teachers and administrative staff. To this end, particular attention was paid to the circulation routes, which are as important as the spaces they serve. Their staging transforms the routes - especially the vertical ones - into an experience that reveals the life of the school.

Directly associated with the classrooms, the double-height rooms are dedicated to computer self-service. Extended by accessible terraces that open onto the city, they become meeting and exchange places for all users.

By grouping the programs on two levels, the school takes the form of a vertical campus, where the full space (classrooms, agora, social room, etc.) participates as much as the empty space (corridors, staircases, terraces) in the increase of exchanges.

A typical floor includes classrooms, computer rooms, a teaching space for teacher-researchers and an opening onto the computer self-service area located in the double-height common space. The 2/3 ratio chosen for the classrooms is ideal to accommodate the different types of teaching.

The school functions on two levels where the mixed programming allows for greater flexibility of use.

Client: Nacarat – Bati Conseil / Purchaser/Operator: Léonard de Vinci Institute / Address: 47 Boulevard de Pesaro, Nanterre, France / Budget : €M 16.86 excl. VAT / Project are : 6090.89 m² / Amphitheatre: 699.3 m² / Administration: 573.8 m² / Hall: 689.3 m² / Teaching (First floor to Seventh floor): 4813.6 m² / Calendar: 2014-2021 / Team: LAN (Architect), ARP Astrance (AMO HEQ), AVEL Acoustique (Acoustic), SECC Ingénierie (Structure), VS-A (Facades), INEX (Fluids) | Certifications and environmental labels: NF HQE Référentiel 2015

Photo credits: © Charly Broyez