Gota Maitreya
Gota Maitreya Retreat
Gota Maitreya Retreat Center in Brazil sits on one of the world's largest concentrations of quartz, with crystal bedrock interwoven with rivers and hosting an abundance of stunning waterfalls.
The client owned two adjacent sites, the first of which had existing accommodation and a meditation and events dome. The client’s brief was to create a new and separate project on her second site prioritizing bioenergetics and a design methodology based on nature’s design principles in order to make the best use of the natural energies of Alto Paraiso for the well-being of its guests.
This idea was studied together with an alternative proposal born of our own site observations and interpretation of the client’s needs on two relatively small sites. During multiple site visits it was observed that an alternative of “knocking down of walls” between the two sites, would create more space through shared amenities and allow for a powerful central focal point and garden, with buildings now situated along its perimeter. Combining the sites also reduced waste and dead space while increasing the day-to-day functionality for the management team. The client agreed and the architectural vision brief was amended to reflect this strategy.
This project illustrates the wonderful outcome of a client brief that prioritises bioenergetics and energetic harmonisation of both the built structures as well as the open landscape. Sweeping thatch roofs, locally harvested timber and the use of salvaged and new adobe bricks provides an intimate relating to the land while supporting local artisans of these endearing crafts.
Client:
Gota Maitreya
Location:
Alto Paraiso, Brazil
Scope of our work:
Architecture & Environments
Facilities:
Three guest cottages + reception building
Project lead:
Arrival & stargazing: The reception building offers visibility to most points of interest across two sites.
Intimate, human-scaled spaces
Muted natural materials & blending landscapes
Bioenergetics
Gota Maitreya is a case study in the prioritization of bioenergetics in a design brief.
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Placement of structures on the land based on analysis of earth energies along with consideration the design brief and program requirements
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Utilizing strategies that favor local, adaptable, closed-loop systems and use of minimal energy, optimizing flow
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Harmonization of selected forms with the surrounding landscape and understanding impact on adjacent spaces
Sustainability
Environmental and social responsibility were woven into initial design thinking in order to find early design opportunities and establish them for later stages of the project.
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Shared amenities reduced building footprints and construction redundancies while optimizing untouched natural landscapes and open areas.
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The area brief was divided into several smaller structures, sensitive to the local neighborhood’s scale, heights, typology and shared assets.
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This project utilizes locally sourced natural materials. Local artisans experienced in making adobe bricks were employed and old adobe bricks were reclaimed from an abandoned earthen building over 100 years old. Local techniques such as mixing earth from abandoned termite mounts was used in the making of earthen plasters to improve the plaster’s resilience to the elements.
