studio VII - 24/7
Year IV
Semester I
prof. Handel Dan, Zarhy Daniel, Erez Tal
Visitor center ; Illegal center
In the middle of the forest between two mountains, a reservoir of water is discovered in the middle of the desert.
A visitor center of the renewable energy company ‘Aviram’ is on one side and has turbines throughout “Yatir” forest; And on the other side there is an illegal surrogacy center, which conducts abortions and adoption procedures, against the Israeli laws, with no distinction of race, religion or gender.
To create a significant architectural experience which preserves the natural conditions and takes advantage of all landscape’s parts, the one level low buildings twist along the topography between the trees, sometimes entering the ground and sometimes disconnect from it. One is completely public, while the other allows maximum privacy, The first presents a movement to a peak point within the forest and the other is hidden from view.
When using a double façade with a variable density of recycled plastic grids, you can control what shall be visible from any point in the structure and which piece of landscape shall be visible to the eye . Although the structures appear to be identical outward to blur the identity of the illegal structure, the internal movement is completely the opposite: When arriving at the visitors' center from the top of the mountain you descend the stairs and enter a sequence of exhibition and information spaces to the point where you can see the wind turbines, and to ascend to the roof floor for enjoying the view.
However, you can access the surrogacy center only through a hidden entrance from inside the mountain. Each program receives its own entrance and a separate exit through the roof floor. The main traffic path is hidden, in the back, and even the medical team has its own traffic system. In a situation where privacy is the main element and emotion is a significant component - the closed and private spaces in front of the changing front, which reveal an infinite view of the landscape, are a main component of the architectural process in the project.