The “Live + Play Condenser” proposal experiments with interior playgrounds and living quarters to produce a “third space” for the 50 percent homeless student body of the school.
Looking to create a variety of informal dwelling areas within the complex, the Condenser frees up one side of the double-loaded H-block party to produce an urban-scale trellis of playrooms by exploring Johan Huizinga’s dissection of the mechanisms of play.
The massing of the existing structure is morphed to form a court-block and in the center is the Playtrium. Inside, basketball courts, jungle gyms and maker-space areas form a stepped terrace which functions as the main circulation for the structure. On top of the playtrium is a village-like housing complex which host families of the students. The introspective, imposing nature of the school arguable provides protection for the people who might not have and hence give them more freedom to live, learn, and play.
