THE CAVE SHELTER
CONCEPT
The proposal aims to create a sheltered refuge which feels warm and welcoming throughout the year. To achieve this, we were inspired by the oldest human shelter: the cave. The bus stop rises from the ground with a green roof from outside, and goes down to the earth on the inside, becoming part of the terrain. Burying part of the shelter in the ground creates a feeling of safety and isolation from the elements, while taking advantage of the thermal stability provided by the earth. This lower level is designed to be a permanence space, with seating and cushions which can be moved around by the users to generate various social interaction possibilities. At this level there will be book shelves which is proposed as a book exchange for the community: people may donate and take books, comics, and magazines, spreading culture and knowledge. The top level is intended as a ready-to-go space, for users who will not wait long for the bus. Thus, it is completely transparent, and can be used as a meeting point. The glass wall towards the south serves another function: it is a passive heat generator through the greenhouse effect, taking advantage of solar orientation. In this way, we create two completely different experiences in a minimal space of 80 sqm, and utilizing passive, cost-conscious heating solutions. The organic design proposed transforms the new shelter into a kind of a sculpture and a new art landmark for the Loyola Campus. It will be totally off-grid, and the charging points, as well as the lights installed at the ceiling, will be fed by the energy provided by the solar panels installed at an external totem. The idea of the totem is to promote public aware of climate change and how the use of solar energy could be an alternative to on-grid forms of energy obtainment.
COMMUNITY CONSULTATION
Our project community consultation was made through an online interview to some students of the campus, and what we found out is that the shelter is actually needed and most used during the winter, in other words, its main function is the protection from the cold weather. Although the shelter should provide refuge for the students at this times, the main complain that we had from them is that the shelter does not provide a comfortable temperature in the winter. Some other complaints we got were about the uncomfortable seating and about the lack of interactivity, but the majority of the students that we interviewed were in fact indifferent about the current shelter. Being that site of the Loyola Campus highly trafficked, with more than 2300 people embarking on shuttle buses on a daily basis, our conclusion was that, to be properly used, the bus shelter needs to offer a better thermal efficiency for the freezing days, and a space for the students to develop other interesting activities at other times.
(Competitor's text)
(Upcoming)
5 scanned / 5 viewable
- Presentation Panel
- Perspective
- Plan
- Section
- Axonometric Drawing
