MAD 05: Free Institution of Education (ILE) by Amid09

The Foundation of Francisco Giner de los Ríos was created in 1916 with the mission of safeguarding the heritage of the Institution of Free Education (or Institución de Libre enseñanza – ILE), created by the pedagogue Francisco Giner de los Ríos. Read more…

The aim was to defend academic freedom and an education independent of official dogmas established by religion, politics or morals.

A century after the death of Giner de los Ríos, the foundation opens a new headquarters in Madrid. It is located on the same plot of Paseo del General Martínez Campos that originally housed the pedagogue’s house. The new headquarters includes an extension of an adjacent plot acquired by donation.

This project resulted from a public competition of ideas initiated in 2004. It won the first prize from the “Professional School of Architects of Madrid” (COAM) in 2015.

The project’s central theme is the garden’s recovery. It serves as a center of activity for the Free Education Institution. The garden patio is conceived as a living space. It is defined as a meeting place. This aligns with the Institution’s legacy of outdoor sports, physical education, and connection to the landscape.

The building and the classrooms open towards this central interior space. The building dilutes its presence. It achieves this through the homogeneous and light treatment of the facades. These facades are wrapped with a lattice of several layers of thin, overlapping galvanized steel rods.

From this central and exterior space, a staircase emerges. Its railing stands out for using rods similar to those on the facade. This design reminds us of the handrails that Fernando Higueras designed at Colegio Estudio. It is one of the first modern schools of the Insitución Libre de Enseñanza (ILE). This staircase descends to an underground space, so that its presence does not break

Design Studio: AMIDO9

Itinerary:

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Photos:

Possible Extension

Sorolla Museum is around the corner. It displays the impressionist work of Joaquín Sorolla in his own home and studio. Original paintings with renown luminous scenes in the south east beaches of Spain.