The Agency for French Education Abroad (AEFE) chose AW² to design the extension of the Lycée Français in Amman, an educational establishment with 400 students from middle school to the final year leading to the French Baccalaureate. The site is located in Al Yadoudeh, near the city centre and the airport. The 1.3-hectare plot is positioned on a hill overlooking a scenic landscape of fields and tree nurseries and is doted with a favourable east-west orientation. The project attests to the desire of both the client and the architect to build with local resources. Particular attention was paid to the environmental and bioclimatic aspects of the construction, focusing on technical solutions and devices adapted to the context. The project gives the school a new visibility that serves both the educational project and France’s cultural influence abroad.

The project is structured around three themes that are specific to Amman and the site itself: the topography of the site, the use of stone and the use of the exceptional light. The architecture consists of large stone colonnades organized on a structured grid. Behind this structure, the openings are organized according to the spaces they illuminate: the workspaces accommodate bays on a sill with transom, the pattern is punctuated by vertical bays which follow the rhythm of the grid. In the upper part, volumes emerging at the right of the circulations capture an indirect light that is reflected on the interior walls. The environmental coherence of the project can be seen in its implementation on the ground, in the use of local resources, and in the inclusion of water treatment. This spirit of eco-sensitive development is primarily aimed at creating an environment that is conducive to learning.