King’s College International School Bangkok, The Refectory
Design by Onion
Photograph by W Workspace
The Refectory’s total area: 525 Sq.M
Air-conditioned area: 285 Sq.M
Natural ventilation area: 240 Sq.M
The Refectory is the dining area of a new building at King’s College International School Bangkok. This new building is built for the senior high school students. Generally, the dining hall in a school tends to be used by teachers and students only at lunch time. Later on in the day, the space may remain empty. Onion decided to design a canteen that can be used throughout the day.
There are two zones in Onion’s design: 156 seats in air conditioning and 90 seats in a naturally ventilated space. The total number of seats is 246, with many types of chairs designed for different sitting postures. Each space is divided by the colours of its materials rather than by partitions.
The main colour of the Refectory is light blue. Blue is the colour of the senior year of King’s College International School Bangkok. We would like the space to be relaxing so we chose a lighter shade of blue, in contrast with the orange brick walls of the building.
Tables are mostly designed to seat groups rather than individuals. These range from bar stools, 2 seated square tables, through to 12 seated round tables and 20 seated long tables. There are visual connections between each dining room and the rest of the school, with The Refectory’s naturally ventilated area being a part of the building’s main atrium. Beyond lunch times, students and teachers can use this space to read, to do homework, to relax and to have discussions.