This downtown meditation center is an outgrowth of a local Austin wellness organization. In keeping with the name and principle of the center, “Casa de Luz,” this center manifests the treatise of enlightenment through the direction and control of daylighting. The use of nested curtain walls allows the building to maintain a reasonable temperature inside in the strong Austin heat. The primary staircase along 7th Street has been aligned along the building to provide interior and exterior views, while serving as a buffer space. All visitor spaces in the building have daylighting filtered through the facade system.
The center features a first floor restaurant, a second floor mediation center, and third floor classrooms and back of house spaces. Entry is through an outdoor gathering space which can double as exterior seating for the restaurant. The central section of the plans provides the primary programmatic elements of the building. The back-of-house section provides amenities and connection to the simultaneously constructed school (not part of the design scope). A patchwork of glazing — varying between opaque and transparent — provides a balance of privacy and views.
Documentation
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