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Friday, 17 February 2012 00:01 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Dilip Vazirani
Sri Lankan architectural talent has recently received recognition in the internationally-renowned and much-respected British based publication Architectural Review.
The prestigious annual ‘Awards for Emerging Architecture’ programme is conducted by the Architectural Review magazine for recognising and rewarding noteworthy projects by architectural talent below the age of 45, globally.
Sri Lankan Architect Chinthaka Wickramage’s IFRC Community Centre at Thalalla has been selected among the highly-commended projects by the jurors.
The Community Centre is built in the vernacular temple building tradition of tam pita viharas (buildings on pillars). Standing in the premises of the Sri Mandalaramaya Buddhist temple in Thalalla, this modest community centre is cleverly designed for spaciousness and multipurpose flexibility, and in the few months since completing construction, it has quickly become the centre of activity for the multi-faceted needs of the local village community.
The Architect has incorporated into the design individual spaces for the office of the local grama sevaka, a library, and a reading room, in three corners of the centre, with toilet facilities in the fourth.
The capacious main hall is home to the many community activities during the week, while on weekends this is where the youth of Thalalla come together for the daham pasala religious school and on full moon Poya days, the centre becomes the preaching hall and the heart of the village’s religious observances.
Back in 2004 the village of Thalalla in the deep south of Sri Lanka was severely affected by the Asian Tsunami and the Sri Mandalaramaya Buddhist temple provided shelter, security food and lodging to the affected villagers.
The role played by the temple and its Chief Monk in actively assisting the needs of the people was recognised by the donor agency International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRCS) by donating this Community Centre to the temple, in gratitude.
This highly-commended Community Centre design is noteworthy for a number of significant features.
Its modest yet versatile design, the relatively restrictive site area available for construction, the futuristic design of the steeply sloping roof that would enable a mezzanine to be installed, giving greater floor space at a later date economically and within the existing building profile, the centre completed within a limited budget of Rs. 5.75 million. It fulfils the floor area needs of a double-storied building within the footprint of a single storey, with future expansion possibilities.
The centre’s simple yet effective treatment of exposed red brick and raw concrete skeleton, mixed with cheery accents of colourfully painted doors in hues of bright red, blue and green, rafters of turquoise blue, shelters all community-related activities.
The centre is a haven of serenity, the sacred Bo tree reaching out to nestle the building within its shading branches, the interior spaces providing a calm environment ideally suited for the multi-functional activities of the people of the village for whom this Community Centre is a second home away from home.
– Pix by Kesara Ratnavibhushana
