“Combining a social framework with a physical one in an apparently seamless way” – Holcim Awards Jury
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Project Entry 2014 Asia Pacific - Children’s Ziggurat: Locally-adapted orphanage and library, Kathmandu, Nepal
The vertical garden and permaculture is a critical component of the sustainability strategy. Vegetation is integrated into the exterior structure and circulation. The vertical structure processes waste, provides food, shades the building, purifies the air with ferns, and creates a lush outdoor environment throughout the building. Whereas this kind of interweaving of daily life with agriculture has often been proposed as a symbolic image of optimism, here it is a necessity.
The jury appreciated the simplicity and robustness of the structure, a reinforced fly-ash concrete frame establishing a three-dimensional matrix for manifold functions, including a range of public amenities. Specific spatial qualities are introduced within the structure, offering children the opportunity to discover, not unlike “Alice in Wonderland”, spaces full of surprise and mystery – roof top terraces, hanging gardens, majestic halls and hidden chambers. The building ultimately manages to combine a social framework with a physical one in a seemingly seamless way.
Last updated: July 18, 2014 Beijing, China
The jury appreciated the simplicity and robustness of the structure, a reinforced fly-ash concrete frame establishing a three-dimensional matrix for manifold functions, including a range of public amenities. Specific spatial qualities are introduced within the structure, offering children the opportunity to discover, not unlike “Alice in Wonderland”, spaces full of surprise and mystery – roof top terraces, hanging gardens, majestic halls and hidden chambers. The building ultimately manages to combine a social framework with a physical one in a seemingly seamless way.