Balancing academic and professional pursuits with the needs of family life is a constant struggle for many, particularly women. The recently completed Kinderoase an der TUM aims to alleviate that pressure as much as possible. Designed by and located on the campus of the Technical University of Munich (TUM) in Bavaria, Germany, the five-storey daycare offers space for 60 children spread across 1,540 square metres.
Positioned between the university’s main campus and its cafeteria, Kinderoase takes over a former parking lot and adds a dynamic new face to the urban streetscape: Set on a compact rectangular base, the building maximizes its tight site by rising upwards and cantilevering outwards, creating an undulating exterior that lends the structure a compelling rhythm.
Working in close collaboration with Austrian firm , specialists in timber construction, the structure is built almost entirely from Alpine spruce wood (save for the foundation slab and southern emergency staircase, which are made from reinforced concrete). A finely crafted shroud of suspended Corten steel slats energizes the facade and lends the building a distinctive character; expanses of floor-to-ceiling glazing help articulate the exterior while also drawing natural light deep inside and establishing a visual connection between the interior and exterior.
Moving inside, the building was conceived as a “vertical playground” for the children, with programming divided across the five storeys. Reception and administrative offices occupy the ground level and spaces for the children, which are grouped by age, are situated on separate upper floors. All-ages communal areas for play, sports and meals are housed in the middle and upper storeys.
To bring the vertical playground concept to realization, sculptural wood slides were installed that connect each floor, turning the act of moving between them into an “invitation to play.” (Elsewhere, a canary yellow spiral staircase provides a more conventional — yet no less cheerful — circulation path.) “We designed the Kinderoase entirely from the perspective of the children who will use it,” says architect Francis Kéré. “We created a vertical playground where they can run, climb and slide from one floor to another. My hope is that this building will make children curious, and encourage them to play, invent games, and do things together.” The positioning of the slides creates open play zones that double as an acoustic buffer between the quieter rooms behind from the noise and traffic from the street.
Warmth radiates throughout the interior spaces thanks to the finely crafted timber framework, with structural beams and radially spanning ceiling panels remaining visible. Further, ash wood was used on the staircase treads and custom furniture, storage pieces and shelving systems were fabricated from wood to reinforce the welcoming atmosphere and complement the minimal amount of steel used.
Crowning the Kinderoase is a partially covered rooftop terrace — or Himmelswiese (“sky meadow”) — that provides the children with safe access to the outdoors where they can run around, connect with the wind and the sun and look out across the city from their own unique vantage point.
For Kéré, whose firm is based in Berlin, the Kinderoase called to mind some of his earlier projects, including the Gando Primary School in his home village of Burkina Faso (2001) as well as more-recent ones like the (2020). “My very first projects were designed schoolchildren, and now I am building for the very youngest. It is a beautiful responsibility.”
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