10 Picks for Institutional Architecture Projects
Selection:
Editorial Team ek magazine
Date:
February 2026
The editorial team of ek magazine selected ten architectural projects, featured in past print issues as well as the ek website, that showcase impressive designs of educational facilities, research centers, libraries and learning institutions
Educational Institutions
The project involves the construction of a small preschool catering to children aged 0-6, as part of a larger initiative to revitalize a school complex in Macerata, in the district of Sforzacosta. With the aim of turning contextual constraints -such as a small plot of land and tight construction timelines -into opportunities, the project adheres to simple typological and construction characteristics. The new building takes shape through a system of seemingly disjointed solids and voids, connected by a large, pitched roof that defines the footprint of the school and creates a series of threshold spaces between indoor and outdoor environments. The arrangement of three small, independent, and separate volumes, housing classrooms, offices, and facilities, creates a sequence of spaces with varied forms and proportions. The result is a porous system that seamlessly integrates with the garden through oblique views facilitated by changes in the roof section. The articulation of spaces becomes evident at transitional junctures, where the seamless flow between environments is highlighted. Within these “intermediate” spaces bridging the classrooms, various architectural elements -such as a striking portal, a skylight illuminating a double-height area, and a solitary column- emerge as focal points, inviting exploration and discovery due to their deliberate placement and size.
The new Metropolitan College building, spanning a total of 2,000m2 with an additional 1,000m2 of basement space, is the fourth facility added to the existing campus in Maroussi. This expansion addresses the organization’s growing educational demands. It is a mixed-use building, housing the Centre for Interdisciplinary Education and Research in Rehabilitation on the ground floor. The basement and first floor contain student training rooms, while the second floor consolidates administrative offices previously spread across other buildings. The new building is situated in the southeast corner of the plot, maximizing the open space in-between the existing buildings and the new addition, while allowing an abundance natural light to enter the interior spaces. Even though the new structure is designed to complement the configuration and style of the surrounding buildings, it establishes its own identity through a unique facade. Instead of a continuous horizontal arrangement of louvers, the facade shifts in angles, directions, and density, forming a dynamic, broken line around the perimeter.
Walker Hall is an adaptive reuse of a 1927 building at the core of the University of California, Davis campus. The project transforms a vacant, seismically unsafe building into a graduate and professional student center with meeting rooms, a lecture hall, and active-learning classrooms that serve the entire campus. Walker Hall exemplifies the power of revitalization by transforming an abandoned into a vibrant academic and social center. The project preserves the character of the 1927 structure while introducing modern learning environments, symbolizing continuity between the university’s history and its forward-looking academic vision. The original two-story north wing now houses student lounges, meeting areas, and offices. The three southern wings, formerly used for agricultural engineering workshops, have been repurposed into a lecture hall and two flexible classrooms. The redesign establishes a clear hierarchy between community spaces and academic functions, ensuring seamless movement through the building.
04. Private Educational Center in Nicosia | Constanti Architects-Enaprosekato Llc
ek Issue: 270 | September 2022
The project aim was the design of a private institute with a total area of 486m2 in the village of Deftera, a semi-urban region near Nicosia. The design concept emphasizes a clear separation between communal spaces and private classrooms. The building’s program includes a reception area, six classrooms, a computer room, a conference room, and a study room. Movable partitions are installed on the ground floor, enabling the classrooms to be combined into two larger spaces when needed. The northern outdoor courtyard serves as a space for both relaxation and educational activities. The design concept is based on the vertical division of pure prism shape into two sections, with the common areas positioned in between. These spaces feature double-height ceilings and transparent walls on both sides, allowing natural light and views of the surrounding landscape to permeate the building, thus creating a seamless connection between the exterior and interior. The common areas are intended for socialization and integration within the educational environment, while the classrooms offer a private, focused setting for teaching -both elements being equally important to the educational experience and central to the overall design concept.
The project concerns the reconfiguration and addition of a new building at the American Farm School, aiming to achieve environmental sustainability and the construction of infrastructure compatible with the existing school buildings, with a strong emphasis on accessibility. Originally, the school complex consisted of two single-storey buildings constructed in two different phases. The first was set at an elevation of +0.60 m above ground level with a rectangular floor plan, while the second was located at +0.00 m. Communication between the two was provided via staircases, which hindered access for people with disabilities. The project proposed the construction of an additional building, funded through a donation by the Panteliadis family, in order to create five additional classrooms, spaces for teaching staff, and an internal shared zone for breaks. The optimal solution involved replacing the building located at +0.60 m with a new two-storey linear building at ground level, allowing for an internal connection between the two units.
Cultural Institutions
The Flexman Library is located in the Sharp building, designed in 1902 by Holabird & Roche Architects. The project aim is to create an engaging environment and connect students from various art programs in a multi-level library. The new design reconfigures the school’s existing main and special collections library on the fifth and sixth floor and exposes the building’s original steel frame structure. A narrow 20cm by 2.5m atrium connects the two levels, establishing a visual and physical connection of the two floors. A new multi-use space named “Corridor+” is constructed to create better circulation and access to the library, while also providing semi-private reading nooks, becoming a flexible public space for meetings, study sessions, exhibitions, and performances.
07. The North Boulder Library | WORKac
The Boulder Public Library issued an open Request for Proposal in 2018 for a new branch library in North Boulder, a project the community had anticipated for over two decades. The proposed vision was to create a library whose iconic status would stem from its sustainability and its positive impact on the community and environment. The North Boulder Library is situated within a diverse neighborhood that blends new developments for young professionals, art studios, galleries, and two manufactured home communities that include Boulder’s largest Spanish-speaking population. The chosen site is a triangular plot bordered by Broadway to the west and Three Mile Creek to the south, with stunning views to the Boulder Flatirons.
Research & Learning Centres
In the heart of Patras, within a 1970s building, lies the new home of “Kseniastos Kosmos” -a learning center that breaks away from conventional norms, designed to spark positive and inspiring emotions in the children who visit.The architectural study focused primarily on transforming the building’s interior to accommodate its new use, while respectfully preserving its original character. The existing spatial layout was maintained, with each former room reimagined as a distinct functional space. A central design move was the preservation and celebration of the original decorative mosaic floors. These were thoughtfully integrated into the new architectural language as elements of memory and aesthetic continuity. Each room’s color palette was carefully selected in dialogue with its respective floor, enhancing the individuality of each space and creating varied atmospheres for both students and educators.
The National Observatory of Cyprus was designed to be a captivating destination for stargazers worldwide, with architecture that harmoniously integrates the building’s volume with the vast sky. Engineered for low maintenance and long-term durability, the observatory aims to inspire future generations, embodying the spirit of exploration as well as our civilization’s quest to understand the universe and our place within it. Cyprus’ first purpose-built observatory will be open to the public and serve as a center for scientific research. Located in a remote rural area, the project aimed to create an architectural landmark that would positively impact the surrounding landscape while becoming a world-class destination to inspire future generations of explorers. The design was crafted to possess a distinctive identity that draws attention from afar, making the human experience of the space both captivating and meaningful. The site’s subtle ridge and significant elevation changes, played a key role in shaping the design, resulting in an elegant and responsive form. The building’s volume was split into two parts, with an opening that frames a view of the valley, the sea, and the horizon. A porch was situated between the two volumes, while the second volume was diagonally “cut,” creating an opening that frames a view of the neighboring village of Agridia.
Cyprus Planetarium is composed of two buildings that house a Planetarium, exhibition zones, a conference center, an amphitheater–observatory, an astronomical observatory, a restaurant, and educational facilities. It is located in Episkopeio, in the Nicosia district, and stands as a landmark project for Cypriot society. It is a pioneering complex that brings together high aesthetics, technology, sustainable development, economic viability, and social impact, contributing to research and innovation, academia, knowledge, and study. Access to the Planetarium is achieved through a transitional “threshold” and a route that passes between water features, planting, and light. The composition of the project is based on Platonic solids such as the cube, the sphere, and the polyhedron. The design seeks to translate symbols into architectural choices: mystery, the unknown, and the universe are expressed through black, while white represents truth, purity, scientific thought, and the soul.
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