Manila Architecture Workshop (MAAW) was just awarded one of six outstanding entries to the recently completed Metrobank Art and Design Excellence (MADE) programs for Architecture and Interior Design. In partnership with the United Architects of the Philippines and BluPrint Magazine, MADE encourages architects to design inventive buildings that address public, economic, and environmental issues.
Per the competition’s instructions, design entries were required to relate to their chosen site or inhabitants. MAAW proposed a Civic Center — intended as an urban environment capable of supporting its community and wellbeing. The firm believes that a civic center can be responsible for improving the quality of life through cultural opportunities and exposure to knowledge.
This project was inspired by one of the Philippines’ noble traits which embodies close relationship with neighbors, and devotion to a community’s organization, “Bayanihan” which means “being in a bayan”, refers to the spirit of communal unity, work and cooperation to achieve a particular goal, states their proposal.
Within the civic center, spaces will be provided for a community library, a learning center, barangay and local government offices, a lecture auditorium, and a multi-purpose gallery. In addition to an urban farm deck where community members can produce their own food, a ground level plaza allows pedestrians to move freely through the space. Naturally, a farm-to-table concept will then enable produce from the community garden to be cooked at the canteen.
Inspired by “blinking eyes,” the proposal’s façade (or modular cells capable of eliminating pollution) wrap around the building and thereby cleanse the air. Its exterior is composed of a material that screens direct sunlight (helping cool the building), while photovoltaic cells line the roof deck. What more could this building need? A desalination tank that processes storm water is also located at basement level to be reserved for outdoor irrigation.
In MAAW’s statement for their proposal, they link the civic center to the Agora in ancient Greece, inviting the public to make transactions and engage in cultural pursuits. A key attribute of their project needs the continuity of public interest and commitment to the Civic Center.
MADE was created in 1984 with the intent to engage youth in positive challenges during the political turmoil in the Philippines at that time.
News Via: Manila Architecture Workshop
