42UP Project: Redefining the Vertical Educational Campus in Paris
42UP: A Vertical Campus Redefining Educational Architecture in Paris
In the heart of Paris’s 17th arrondissement, the 42UP project represents a radical extension of École 42, reimagining the concept of the traditional educational campus. The project transforms a 3,600 m² site into a vertical campus spanning 9,025 m², accommodating 1,400 workstations in a 24/7 learning environment, without the need for teachers or formal curricula, following a completely free-access model.
Building on the Existing Structure
Instead of complete demolition and starting anew, AR Architecture Studio leveraged the existing structure, adding four primary volumes and seven floors of a steel framework rising 18 meters above the original building. This approach embodies the concept of architectural frugality, maximizing utility with minimal resources, while preserving the historical identity of the site.
The original structure, built in 1962 on land that previously housed Paris’s demolished fortifications, specifically Fort No. 42, adds a symbolic dimension to the digital campus, linking the past with modern technological advancements in building materials and educational design.
The Bridge-Building: Structural Boldness Amid Architectural Fineness
One of the most striking elements of the 42UP project is the steel bridge-building suspended above the existing structure. This bridge is supported by vertical circulation towers containing double Chambord-style staircases and a 42-meter-long beam. Notably, the third floor beneath this beam is column-free, creating a spacious terrace overlooking the city and giving the interior space a sense of openness and visual freedom.
This volumetric play balances architectural delicacy with structural boldness, while also allowing the school to continue operating during construction, as students were temporarily relocated to the NOC42 residences during critical phases of the project.
Perforated White Lace: A Changing Architectural Language
To achieve visual harmony between old and new, the architects employed a perforated white metal layer, contrasting with the original black façade and harmonizing with the adjacent NOC42 residences.
The 1.17 × 1.17-meter mesh transforms into triangular units in the upper structure, producing a dynamic effect that changes with daylight. Double-height glass units measuring 2.34 × 2.34 meters penetrate this metal veil, adding a distinctive visual rhythm that enhances the design language and ensures the campus experience is ever-changing and renewed with each passage.
Solar Protection and Environmental Functions
The finely perforated metal layer provides essential solar protection for a building housing 1,400 computers that generate significant heat, while simultaneously allowing natural light to penetrate the interior. As a result, the façade becomes lively and variable, with transparency levels changing according to weather and time, creating a continuous dialogue between interior and exterior spaces.
This layer effectively contributes to enhancing thermal comfort within the building during summer, a crucial element for maintaining optimal conditions for work and learning in a data-intensive environment.
A Fully Integrated Urban Ecosystem
The 42UP project forms part of an integrated system that operates symbiotically with the NOC42 complex, winner of the Réinventer Paris competition, which provides 700 beds along the Bessières Avenue. Together, they create a complete urban campus, designed since 2015 as a single coherent vision within the city fabric.
This ecosystem offers a new model for urban educational infrastructure, where living, learning, and recreational spaces coexist seamlessly, reflecting the integration of education into the urban fabric in an innovative and sustainable manner. More insights can be found in our Archive and Projects sections.
Maximizing Every Square Meter
Modern architecture faces the challenge of underused educational facilities, which 42UP addresses through spatial efficiency and chronotopy, maximizing usage by leveraging continuous operation. For example, wide open floors replace traditional closed classrooms, while peripheral pathways and corners behind staircases provide intimate spaces suitable for focused work or collaboration.
The quality of the interior environment is also enhanced through acoustic absorption using wood wool ceiling panels and fabric coverings. Additionally, each floor features a distinctive color identity, red, green, or blue, to facilitate intuitive and effective navigation.
Integrating Art with Movement: Street Art Within the Campus
Street art plays a key role in the building experience, as curator Nicolas Laugero Lasser transforms four main staircases into vertical artistic journeys. Each staircase showcases different artistic universes, creating distinct spatial identities that serve both aesthetic and wayfinding functions.
Thus, movement between floors is no longer just a necessary transition but becomes moments of discovery and inspiration, enriching the student experience and making the learning environment more engaging and interactive.
✦ ArchUp Editorial Insight
The 42UP project can be considered an intriguing architectural experiment in reimagining the concept of the vertical educational campus. The steel bridge and dynamic façades stand out as innovative means of utilizing vertical space and creating a visual interaction between interior and exterior. Additionally, integrating art within staircase movement and assigning a color identity to each floor adds a new dimension to the educational experience and provides clearer visual understanding of navigation within the building.
However, the project raises several questions from the perspective of applied architecture and usage sustainability. For instance, the heavy reliance on suspended steel structures and perforated façades may impose complex long-term maintenance challenges, particularly in a high-usage educational environment. Likewise, the design of open floors and large spaces may create difficulties in sound control and privacy, despite the use of acoustic materials, which could affect learning quality in certain situations.
On the other hand, the free-access model integrated with NOC42 residences highlights an interesting urban vision, though it may be less replicable in other educational contexts requiring stricter supervision or organization, limiting the project’s direct applicability as a global model.
In summary, 42UP offers a modern vision for vertical education and urban integration while providing valuable insights into embedding educational infrastructure within the urban fabric in a flexible way. Nevertheless, its unique architectural elements may require careful evaluation in terms of sustainability, adaptation to daily needs, and applicability in diverse educational environments. Further resources are available in our Architectural News and Projects sections.
