
Nestled in San Francisco’s SoMa District, Presidio Knolls School is a quiet, serene escape from the bustling city. Surrounded by high-rise apartments and local businesses, the Mandarin immersion school is elegantly concealed by an intricate aluminum façade from leading metals expert BŌK Modern, headquartered in San Francisco. Offering protection for the interior courtyard and classrooms beyond the street entrance, the biophilic metal façade is also a warm welcome to the students as they enter the urban academic environment. Inside, a colorful winding guardrail enlivens a neutral courtyard.

Photo by Kevin Quach
Studio Bondy Architecture, based in Oakland, Calif., was tasked with renovating the PKS campus, including two historic buildings and the main U-Wing Building containing the interior courtyard. The team wanted to design a new public-facing identity while creating a safe environment for the kindergarten through eighth grade students. To strike that balance, they called on BŌK Modern to design custom metal treatments for the building’s exterior façade, front gate, interior stairs, and balcony guardrails.

“The distinctive element of the façade and interior courtyard is the perforated metal screen. The pattern is based on a Chinese ice-ray design, which was a common motif in wood lattice window designs in the Ming and Qing Dynasties,” says Laura Rambin, AIA, principal at Studio Bondy Architecture. “On the street-facing façade, the pattern decreases in density as it rises up to the third story of the building, giving a feeling of lightness. Within the interior courtyard, the pattern creates dynamic shadows and has the effect of standing in a bamboo forest.”

Designing patterns for kid-centric environments can be challenging, so BŌK and Studio Bondy Architecture carefully selected a pattern that didn’t prohibit climbing but naturally discouraged children from doing so. The custom ice-ray design also has holes too small for toes and feet to fit, and narrow vertical openings prevent anyone from crawling through.

Studio Bondy Architecture applied the metal wallscreens along the school’s exterior, creating a streetside focal point and offering subtle protection for the students inside. Washed in a soft green color, the panels resemble leaves on a tree and decrease in density as they climb the three-story building, letting in more light through the covered windows. Plus, the window screens are operable for maintenance.
Upon entering the front gate, the school’s interior courtyard greets students and faculty alike with a light-filled space for gathering and play. Landscaped with slatted wood risers and lush foliage, the green aluminum treatments along the stair and balcony guardrails cast intricate shadows to create a tree-covered effect.

As commercial designers continue to prioritize biophilia, BŌK Modern’s metal treatments offer dual functions in safety and nature-inspired beauty. Merging intricate patterns and soft colors with durable, weather-withstanding aluminum, this exterior solution is a sustainable, cost-saving solution that will be part of the school’s identity for decades to come.

Learn more about how BŌK Modern’s innovative approach to metalwork turns architectural vision into reality.