the Exhale Sanctuary

Multi-faith Space Design

Advanced Studio | Fall 2019

Instructor: Katherine Lambert

The Exhale Sanctuary is a multi-faith space where migrants can go to pray and meditate at the US — Mexico border. The Exhale Sanctuary can serve as a mental asylum and provide spiritual and emotional support for migrants who are in a desperate plight.

Research

Biology Inspirations

Research

Border Problems

The number of migrants coming to the border seeking asylum has hit the highest total in almost a decade. The U.S. Border Patrol apprehended more than 66,000 migrants in February and 76,000 in March. The majority of those arrested were families or children traveling alone or without a parent, and are fleeing the harms caused by corruption, gangs, poverty, political upheaval, and environmental vulnerabilities in their home countries.

Religion is central to the lives of many Latin Americans. Indeed, majorities in most countries surveyed say religion is very important to them. Two-thirds or more express this view in Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Ecuador, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia and Venezuela.

Concept

Centric & Symmetric Tension/Growing/Inflation/Expansion/Release

The Exhale Sanctuary will be constructed with two parts: two different qualities of stretchable fabrics will make the architectural skin and a double-skinned polygonal plastic material will be used for the structure. When there are no people in prayer, the air-bags are inflated in form and has a better light transmission quality. While, with more and more people sitting or kneeling in prayer, the gravity produced will pull the strings that are connected to the air bags. Then, the air bags will be dragged back into the interior space and thus creating a transitional spatial experience between light and dark, active and quiet, spacious and packed. People who are entering the space at that moment will also notice the state of the skin so they can adjust their behavior and expectations accordingly.

3D Printed Model

Experiences

Safe Sacred Supportive

Try to picture a sanctuary in your mind, a quiet and sacred space. The depictions of expansive landscapes, moments of seclusion，the tenacity of life, and gatherings of loved ones bring my concept of sanctuary to life. Ultimately, it creates a gathering space to bring migrants together, which will allow them to meet people with similar stories and gently keep each other company. The Exhale Sanctuary is a safe space of refuge. It not only serves as a physical place of shelter, but also brings back the vastness of nature or the comfort of home. It can be rooted in memory, the peacefulness of solitude or company, or feelings of nostalgia.