Taking a cue from the old city streets of Mathura city in India where this project is located, this 800 room students' hostel creates organic spaces. Designed in five linear blocks, the built spaces twist and turn along their length on a wedge-shaped site. Sitting adjacent to repetitive hostel blocks on either side these new hostels within a large university campus create individual spaces with discernible identities. The orientation of the buildings is done with a view of generating large north-facing gardens overlooking a vast playground towards the north.
Each hostel room is punctuated with a wedge-shaped, north-facing bay window on the outside and ventilators towards the internal corridor facilitating both cross ventilation and light throughout the year. These buildings create small break out spaces at each bending point allowing natural light into the internal circulation spaces. These factors create an energy efficient building minimizing heat gain in response to the climate having an average temperature above 30 deg Celsius for 8 months of the year when the sun is in the Southern Hemisphere.
Two focal areas created at the ends of the buildings house cafeterias, games rooms and gymnasiums opening into north facing gardens and terraces. Each of the public spaces are large volumes with 20ft high ceilings. Each block is differently colored along with the internal face of the bay windows of the hostel in bright colors to create an identity. The organic layout characterizes each space within the site and color accentuates different blocks. Rain water harvesting, water recycling and usage of solar panels make it more energy efficient along with the orientation and facilitation of natural ventilation.
The Street is contextual to the climate and the orientation of the site, thus creating varied experiences and changing perceptions of space in each part of the 6-acre site.