City Gallery, Town Hall, Colombo 07 Part 1 Project 2010 Anam Abdul Azeez City School of Architecture | Sri Lanka CITY GALLERY “a Peoples Place” It is a global dilemma that society is drifting apart. People are strung by virtual connections and face a loss of physical connectedness.Public buildings are an attempt to foster social connectedness.The Town Hall Triangle is a prime location in the City. Teeming with social, cultural and architectural value this location has lost its spirit due to the disappearing social connectedness.The City Gallery is an attempt to revive this spirit and rejuvenate this location.The Context: The Town Hall and its surroundings portray a mosaic of architectural character. Each period of occupation by foreign rulers has left its mark. There is also a distinct domescape in the area.Observations made on Site: The City and its people are disconnected.At this node people are constantly in a rush and fail to observe each other and the rich history around them.The varied architectural character in this location is not appreciated-instead seems to contribute to the chaos.The Town Hall has lost its status as the Civic Centre of the City which was its initial purpose.The Design Concept: The City Gallery is an Interface which bridges the City and its People.It is a single, simple & elegant structure which breaks away from the chaos around it to provide relief to the people and establish a better connection between them and the City.The Site is strengthened with a statement “a new building that relates the old and new but represents its own age with integrity”.The City Gallery is a building open to the Public irrelevant of their differences. It gives them an opportunity to unwind, appreciate art & technology, appreciate the City and connect with each other.A skeletal structure punctured by occasional solid volumes contrasts the solid presence of historic buildings in the context. The skin of the building shifts between transparent and semi-transparent to allow views and create a flow of and energy between the City, the Town Hall and the City Gallery. Anam Abdul Azeez The design for the City Gallery in Town Hall Triangle by Ms. Anam Abdul Azeez comprised her submission for the comprehensive Design Project for SLIA (Part I) Examination. The CDP occurs within the context of “Colombo 2030 green, clean and friendly” design theme which was developed as a part of the context generated architectural exercise. Urban fabric was strong with its physical, social, cultural and political characteristics comprising, significant colonial buildings, important node connecting suburbs & regions, rich green Viharamahadevi Park and mixture of people from all over the country.Evaluating the incremental evolution of a city landscape that is both responsive to being site specific and responding to the local social & cultural aspirations, a narrative that engages in time, memory and place making. The concept defines an evolving journey over a period of time allowing people to engage, participate and change the city and the unexpected program to shape and define the urban typology. The proposal for the City Gallery utilizes a highly non-contextual futuristic language, rooted in minds of the next generation of architectural styles, composition or the romantic notion of a picturesque city where the process and the event defines the making of an incidental architecture.Our nominee’s design engages wholeheartedly with the aims and objectives of the project, and is executed in a sophisticated manner. We commend it to the jury. Tutor(s)