Site and Prompt
Site: Market House on RISD campus - Providence, RI, USA
Prompt: Turn this building that is located on the center of the RISD campus into a project with a program that involves wellness.
Market house was built in 1775. Over the years, it has been used as a market, a city hall, and eventually a campus building for classrooms and offices. Sitting next to a busy intersection, its surrounding environment is chaotic and busy.
Concept Diagram
For this reflection center, I want to put a focus on the process of arriving at the “meditating state” rather than the destination of this route. Instead of focusing on the reflection spaces, I chose to focus on the aspect of journey - the path to reflection, the process over the end goal. Reflection is not about reaching a destination, it is about the transformation.
Transformation into a Reflection Center
The entrance was moved from the front facade (that is facing the busy Benefit St) to the garden on the side of the building, as a method to create a subtle and more quiet entrance.
To isolate the reflection center from the busy and fast-paced campus environment, I then dug around the building to create a moat, opening up the basement level while introducing water into the building from the Providence River.
Section Model
