Gaia Soul
"Thermal qualities are an important part of our experience of a space, they not only influence what we choose to do there, but how we feel about the space"
Lisa Heschong, Thermal Delight in Architecture
Client:
Gaia Soul is a surf, yoga and co-work retreat that is situated in a rural Sri Lankan village at the coast near Dikwella.
Description:
The concept began as a simple response to the immediate qualities of the site (light, topography, vegetation), but then received rigorous shaping for thermal comfort.
The thermal strategy starts from where you enter the building, to where you sleep, eat, work and "play". Each space, in varying degrees, is designed to create positive and negative air pressure zones and increased air flow. Deep overhangs towards the sun ensure adequate shade to the open facades which receive the prevailing sea breeze, and at the same time views towards the ocean.
The retained garden, together with the built structure (consisting of two perpendicular wings) create a ventilated "outdoor room" where all the public activities are gathered under one roof. This "room" enjoys shade and ventilation throughout the day and will therefore draw residents towards it. The volume, acts like any public urban space, where the edges, their scale and function, allows “life” to spill out onto it. The private rooms vary in size and occupancy type as you move up and away from the building’s "living room". Walkways connecting the rooms on the upper levels, become balconies, overlooking the scene below, creating varying degrees of connectedness with the "life" below. The yoga studio receives a position on the furthest upper level, ensuring a journey up and away, in the canopy, enjoying the breeze and framed view of the ocean.
The flat roof allows, with minimum intervention, the platform for a skateboard ramp. In addition to skateboarding in the late afternoon, the space will be utilized for open-air yoga sessions, early morning meditation and sun-downers.
The building entrance and parking off the secondary street, allows a thick vegetated street edge towards the North, hiding the building and ensuring that Gaia Soul blends into the almost rural character.
