The Locus: Kaira Looro
Client / Location Kaira Looro/ Sedhiou, Senegal
Year / Status 2018 / Conceptual
Typology Public Building Design, Urban Design, Community Planning, Competition Entry
Site Area / Built-up Area 1866 sq.m. / 1020 sq.m.
Collaboration JohN / john.instagram.com
The Locus is where minds meet, where the genius is invoked and where celebrations happen. Celebration of oneness and togetherness by appreciating diversity and plurality! The Locus is the binding energy of an ideologically diverse society united by the magnetism of place. A place open and welcoming to all. A place without barriers! A place where every wall leads to a new entrance and every ending leads to a new beginning. A place of limitless possibilities.
The Cultural Centre at Sedhiou is envisioned as an open and welcoming shared space for the people of the town that should blur any socio-cultural or economic borders between them by providing a common platform to meet, interact and share moments. Through a participatory approach in the construction of the planned barrier free design of the Centre with minimal restrictive wall surfaces, the project aims to effectively bring together people not only through inclusion by creating a sense of shared ownership but also by establishing an identity of open-mindedness through design.
The Cultural Centre acts as a place of momentary pause for citizens on the move. The location of the Centre at the junction of major town streets which connects the public buildings and spaces around the zone makes it an ideal spot for stopping and meeting friends and fellow citizens. The Centre provides an open stage for public art performances, flexible spaces for open markets, an open wall gallery for public displays, a shared open library and a multi-purpose room for occasional camps and programs along with a generously large semi-open meeting space and basic amenities like toilets and drinking water spots for people and cattle.
The built form is visually dominated by a roofed pavilion constructed with structural bamboo poles and metal sheet roofing supported on a rammed earth foundation. Bamboo screens and ceiling surfaces acts as major light and heat controlling devices. The two curved solid walls and the enclosures are made of local clay bricks to reduce heat transmission and ease the construction process. The poles use simple and easy to replicate metal joinery, the flooring is done in local shell and the doors for enclosed spaces are made of recycled local wood on metal frame. The underground rainwater tanks are complemented by the central collector ponds that also acts as a micro thermal control system through evaporative cooling.
