STU Graduate School of Architecture and Interior Design: Winner of Architect of the Year Awards 2024. The Greenasium is a gym and sports space project located in the middle of an uprising North Kaohsiung area where tall housings and skyscrapers inevitably occupied the promising spaces. Sitting diagonally to a park, the project site takes advantage of forming a green aisle and creates a better workout environment both mentally and physically.

This white architecture interested its users by shape rather than grandiose decorations. Layers of different organic shapes shield each fitness room from direct sunlight, and they are connected vertically and horizontally through trees and flowerbeds. Whether you are parking your car in the basement, swimming in the outdoor pool, or doing yoga on the second floor, there is a glimpse of green around you that not only immerses people in nature but protects their privacy from the outside. From the basement to the top, there are spaces that run through vertically for better air circulation and green penetration. 

The design aims to decrease the occupied area and lower the architecture height. We maximize the exercising area with long diagonal building units, which occupy the least space on site to create extra space for more planting. The lower architectural building creates a height difference in this block which allows wind to travel. In a hot, humid tropical city, we lower the humidity level by creating a well-functioning ventilation and circulation system. We design patios and spacing between buildings for traveling winds to form a circulation cycle with the air indoors, freshening all wasted air by bringing it out from the top. The patios, spacing, and large floor-to-ceiling windows installed on the north and south sides of the building encourage one to focus on the outside view without being disturbed by sun exposure. The east and west sides of the building limit its number of windows, with the exception of the east outdoor swimming pool. The pool absorbs heat from the sunrise, providing morning swimmers with warm water while shielding severe sunlight at noon by the upper architecture layer.

The architecture is separated into two main sections: the gym and the stadium. The swimming pool and gym are on the northeast, while the stadium is on the west. The stadium contains a badminton court on the ground level and a basketball court on the first. The arc of the cylinder architecture is designed to improve the ventilation of the high-activity space with spectators’ seats at the edge of the stadium. The cold fresh air from the pool and plants of the lower level ascended from the void space at the bottom to the stadium top through the gap of the seats, forming a buoyancy effect with the top air, which was heated by the metal board installed specifically on the top to absorb the sun exposure. 

In this sports center project, we use stairs to connect each component, using them as emergency exits, and a chance to improve ventilation through the stair gaps. With cars and pedestrian passages separated, we ensure a safe workout area for all ages to enjoy and relax.

Project Details:-
Firm
STU Graduate School of Architecture and Interior Design

Architect
Keng Fu Lo

Project Name
Greenasium Sport Center

Project Category
Sports & Recreation Concept

Team
Keng Fu Lo

Project Location
Kaohsiung

Country
Taiwan

Photography ©Credit
Keng Fu Lo