Jinbatgol Wood Friendly Community Centre

The brief for this project suggested that it be considered as a “living ground”.  In the words of the competition organisers, living ground is understood as a concept that acknowledge the ground as a source of life and the root of all culture, and is also that which connects us to each other.  Our proposal then is envisaged as a device that connects people to each other and to the place they are in.

The building is nestled in the ground, surrounded by cool earth covered in plants, lichens and moss. From this anchoring in the landscape, the building rises create portals or viewports that look onto the ridgelines and mountains. A staircase connects these portals, not as a simple access between floors, but a journey that takes visitors up through a network of spaces and views and includes a bridge that connects to the Youth Centre.

A charred timber envelope provides a protective skin. During the summer, the inside is a cool refuge, while in winter, glass facades and skylights allow for welcomed sunlight. Inside, warm larch cladding creates a glowing interior while the stairs, a washed forest green, is a pop of colour to emphasise lively movement up and through the building.

The building is less an “object” than a choreography of life, a threshold between the city and landscape, a place where journeys start and end, and where people connect to each other and the ground.