Name: Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired Year: 2001
Location: Taller de-Arquitectura-Mauricio Rocha Architect: Mexico City, Mexico
- Created as part of a program by the Mexico City government - Provide services to one of the most disadvantaged and highly-populated areas of the city. Iztapalapa is the district with the largest visually impaired population in the Mexican capital. - Complex is on corner plot bordered by two avenues. A blind wall encircles the complex on its four sides and acts as an acoustic barrier as well as a retaining wall/blank to hold the earth moved from neighboring wasteland areas.
Materials Used
- The internal facade of the boundary wall creates banks that change shape, height, and orientation, thus creating various courtyards. - The buildings are rectangular prisms, based on concrete frames and flat roofs. Each group explores different spatial and structural relationships, making each space identifiable for the user and varying size, light intensity and weight of materials: concrete, tepetate bricks, steel, and glass. - The Center aims to enhance spatial perception, activating the five senses as experience and source of information. - A water channel runs through the center of the plaza, so that the sound of the water guides users along their way. Horizontal and vertical lines in the concrete at hand height offer tactile clues to identify each building. - Six types of fragrant plants and flowers in the perimeter gardens act as constant sensors to help orientate users within the complex.
82
Dyed Concrete
Water
Steel
Glass
Tepetate Bricks
Fig 8.1 (extreme right) - Datum Lines depicting a strong use of axes in the Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired, indicating that a more fluid space is critical to universal design. Fig 8.2 (top) - Section diagram depicting the flat roofscape for the multiple buildings at the Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired depicting the prevention of shadows by pitched roofs, preventing greater shadow formation. Fig 8.3 (above) - Materials used in Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired indicating a dire need for tactile variance while designing for the visually impaired Fig 8.4 (right) - Diagram depicting the central core axis of the Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired, followed by multiple buildings branching off of the central axis.
83