noa* network of architecture has unveiled a prototype of a Centre for Culture and Community (CeCuCo) questioning "what form flexibility takes, how nature can be embedded in the project and how far the role of the architect goes, in the belief that a project only works when people make it their own". The center is a research project that explores how to create flexible and multifunctional spaces without a fixed context, giving the community the chance to decide, act, and circulate within the architecture.
While defining the functional programme, noa* first studied the needs of a cultural and community center, focusing on the different ways to create an inclusive architecture. The firm began exploring how they can design an all-year-round space that works in the same way for children who meet to play, as it does for adults who want to watch an exhibition, or teenagers who want to listen to a concert. To answer these questions, they needed to define different spaces capable of satisfying multiple needs, rather than specifying a fixed list of functions.
The project's structure is based on the triangle, repeated modularly in both plan and elevation. Initially, the triangular module is inscribed in a 3x3 meter square followed by a 3x1.5 meter square in the second case. The geometric typology allows the center to expand or contract according to the spatial needs of the context, as well as offer different volumetric designs in an urban planning level.
Through 6 types of floor plans, ranging between 8 sqm 115 sqm, all the possible activities of the center are accommodated. The façade opens up to a variety of configurations, creating a visual and physical metamorphosis. Doors and windows can be moved, fanned out, turned on their hinges, lowered, or raised, creating multiple architectural possibilities and scenarios. Its flexibility and modularity allows it to be located anywhere in the world; on a beach on a volcanic island, in the Scandinavian forests, or on the roofs of socialist housing in Berlin.
Sustainability was also explored in all the aspects of the design, including the choice of materials and construction techniques. For this prototype, natural materials and an exposed construction system were chosen. For instance, the façade is made up of an exposed wooden structural system and a wall of clay bricks, alternating with transparent parts. The cultural center also includes green roofs and pergolas, photovoltaic systems, rainwater collecting systems, cross-ventilation systems, as well as ponds and wooded areas for a temperate microclimate.
