INSPIRATION and CHALLENGE
The gradual fading of traditional crafts and the depopulation of historic high-mountain villages are a problem for the entire international community. This same problem exists in Georgia as well. We intend to contribute to the preservation of age-old traditions, the loss of which would be irreparable.
Ushguli is a community of four villages located in the upper part of the Svanetia region of Georgia. Recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Ushguli is one of the Highest Continuously Inhabited settlements in Europe. Its particularly inaccessible location has, on the one hand, helped to preserve the timeless feeling and rich traditions of the village, and on the other hand, limited the possibilities for improvement of the living conditions of the community.
Due to dependence upon traditional small-scale farming, there are scarce alternative sources of income and few if any opportunities for young people to break out of the poverty cycle.
We feel obliged to play our part and participate in the improvement of the living conditions of the villagers. We believe that with well-conceived design we can help things run more smoothly, improve people’s well-being, and make life more enjoyable. In our design, sustainability is demonstrated by providing solutions to control the social, economic and environmental footprints of a project.
Designing Mazeri was an incredible experience for our team, as it enabled us to preserve and enhance what exists, explore and try out new design solutions, impact existing hospitality development policy and create a custom, uncompromising and higher sensational-level experience. We remained, at the same time, committed to a careful analysis of the ecological and social effects of each phase of the project. The design attempts to preserve the intact beauty of the landscape, while providing the guests with shelter from terrestrial chaos, to dive into a relaxing, inspirational, surrealistic atmosphere.
Mazeri - Low Environmental Impact, High Style Personalized Services at the Highest Altitude. The complex is an attempt to break with the dynamic of homogenous, standardized accommodation and offer a truly unique stay. Mazeri is a pilot representation of a new "Destination Earth" hospitality concept, offering an uncompromising higher, sensational-level experience . . . the results are convincing, surprising and - sometimes - breath-taking.
A hight-rise hotels, built in rural areas or in the wild nature, in addition to causing many other negative results, they also ruin the landscape graphics. With the design we would like to create an example and demonstrate one of the alternatives, that is sustainable way of a hospitality destination development in remote rural aereas. How even in the near-impossible terrestrial circumstances, it can, and should be created the breathtaking places.
The external shapes, internal design, operation flow and layout of the "Mazeri Hospitality Complex" and it's domes have been determined by the extreme landscape relief, and by a number of near-impossible restrictions (both natural and legal) that we have had to overcome:
1- Due to the UNESCO heritage status - the visual, physical, and environmental
impacts had to be near to zero;
2- Due to the extreme lack of agricultural land - we had no moral right to take
even a small piece of this territory;
3- Available were only slopes of more than forty degrees of inclination, and even
these spaces are used for grazing by local “alpine” domestic animals in the
summer;
4- On this kind of slopes there is a high probability of avalanches in winter;
5- Finally, let's not forget that we are more than 2000 m above sea level, and the area is covered with snow for six months a year!
To complete this "impossible mission,” we applied the technology of underground construction - but avoid the term "underground," because there are no sensational and conceptual links with the "Mazeri Hospitality Complex”.
UNIQUE PROPERTIES and OPERATION FLOW
Mazeri situated on a slope overlooking the Village, refers to the form of surrounding hills, proposing a series of interconnected surrealistic structures, forming the Hospitality Complex.
The concept was born with the intention of offering guests a space full of luxury and comfort, that provides a true escape from everyday life, with the objective to compleply disconnect from it and enjoy and the wide range of "terestrial" services.
To complete the "impossible mission,” we applied the technology of underground construction — but avoid the term "underground," because there are no sensational and conceptual links with the Hospitality Complex.
Mazeris', low-rise domes are carefully integrated into the mountain setting, almost entirely built into the hillside. The domes are nearly invisible, from certain angles, they are almost entirely hidden behind hills, their curved roofs mimicking the shapes of grass- or snow-covered dunes around them, to blend perfectly with the surroundings. Mazeri do not dominances over the slope, but coexists with it. Mazeri becomes the landscape itself – a hilly slope, which creates smooth forms from the foot up to cap of the steeply rising mountain range.
Observing the hills from below, from the village, it is quite difficult to find the domes at first glance. When looking at them, the word "Underground" comes to mind. But when we climb up to them, the circumstances change radically, leading to dramatic sensory and emotional changes as well.
The architectural plans include a futuristic structures, offering uninterrupted stunning 360 degree views of the vast mountainous landscape. Any of the suites offer different angles of spectacular views, at the same time, conceding the guests to satisfy their need for privacy.
The master plan consists of 21 domes of five suites, which connect to each other and with the central artery by a system of semi-submerged galleries. All these domes feature eco-friendly and sustainable heating, cooling and ventilation systems.
To go down to the village, instead of an elevator, the guests use a funicular, concealed underground in order to minimize the visual impact and avalanche danger. To reach the rooms from the “funicular,” rather than ordinary corridors, the guests walk along pedestrian galleries flanked by moving walkways, with incredible views from the height of an eagle's flight — thus creating sensations not of walking, but rather navigating at the mountains’ level. Instead of numbers on the doors, the rooms are marked by their altitudes — because here we have the whole hill in disposition, instead of a building.
The entertainment, food and beverage areas are scattered thematically among the domes’ "Ground Decks", in the "Ski Start" center, at the top of the complex, where the functions of lobby - for the whole UNESCO-heritige Village, filled with the public spaces, cafes and bars is located. The complex will also host a range of cultural performance and activities such as: Jazz and Folk music events and Choreography performance.
The sensations of being a guest not only of this place but of the entire planet "Earth" are intensified by the absence of places to set foot on the ground (except on the terraces) and the possibility of moving from one floor to another without the need for stairs (as if in "zero-gravity" conditions). But the spatial planning does not end here, and continues with "suites" for Winter Gardens and Greenhouses for Vegetables, spread through the gallery-corridors and in their panoramic points.
Domes structure becomes expressed by adapting to spacial conditions. Alternating between slab and frame behaviors, deep beams become shallower until they fuse and become slabs, and slabs in turn splinter into beams, branching out and weaving through the building. The walls and ceilings, of natural fabrics stretched between wooden beams, contribute to the disorientation of spatial understanding, generating the question: "Is it a yacht, an airship, a cave or an outdoor tent?"
Indeed for this reason, we use naval terminology (such as stern, aft, sun or upper deck) to explain the layouts of the suites and public spaces.
The feeling of being in a hovering space, rather than a stable one, is reinforced by the use of a series of equipment which are normally installed in transportation with a high level of instability. But if we look from the other side, we could say that the handrails everywhere and the connecting holes, camouflaged by the "sun rays chimney flues," are the only indications of extraterrestrial spaces.
FUNICOLAR, SKI SLOPE and the "SAVE GLACIAL" SYSTEM
The fonicolar tunnel allows us to solve important things such as safety and comfort, but having white color and an elliptical shape, it also allows us to create incredible effects, both visual and acoustic.
A drone, which accompanies the funicular up and down, transmits video to three projectors installed on each funocolar car. Thus, in an online mood, we bring the external world into the underground. When there is bad weather outside, guests can enjoy breathtaking journeys between canyons, rivers and lakes - thus virtually visiting, another natural beauties of Georgia.
One decision, out of the rules, as a rule, leads to another. Here in Mazeri, there is no need for guests to climb in order to ski. It’s enough to put on skis and go to the ski slope - directly from the lobby of the any domes, as if from a ski jump! Guests of the complex would be able to take the funicolar to the top and ski down into the Village.
The ski run is a living organism that stands on a subterranean vent system. Air circulating between cold and warm areas extends the longevity of the snow, and cools or heats inside spaces.
To protect the ski slope from the alpine sun, we install "Save Glacial Domes". The domes are powered by hot air and helium. While closed to protect the snow, the system transforms solar energy into electrical energy. When snowing, the system opens to increase the depth of snow cover on the slope.
The combination of two "Snow Salvage" methods allows us to prolong the ski season and in some places create conditions for skiing all year round. "Save Glacial Domes" is a patented system that has three typologies: Tovli, Tetnuldi and Cvishi's Cari.
EXTERIOR
The aim was to integrate the project into the extraordinary extreme mountainous landscape as naturally as possible, combining unbroken mountain lines with human-made geometries, inspired by just the same natural habitat.
The architecture seeks to be a subtle insertion into the alpine landscape. The domes effortlessly integrate with the landscape profile, not affecting in the least the delicate balance of "filled" and "empty" that grace the structure.
The plans and section show the building to be a slice of space removed from the hillside, and vertical supports have been visually avoided to enhance this sense.
We wanted a design that embraced the surrounding world in the lightest possible way, like a dirigible nestled into the hillside. The domes are extended beyond the natural ground surface, with a structure of glazed reinforced timber beams, blanketed by a "green-umbrella" over the roof.
The domes have an "exoskeleton" shaped like a shell, like a woodlouse or an armadillo that has a hard outer shell and in case of danger can cover up in a moment, without leaving soft parts of its body exposed.
The domes caps behave identically to these animals: as soon as there is a sign of the danger of an avalanche, it is covered by the extension of shields hidden under the earthen layers. On the other hand, when there it is a sunny day, like animals that stretch their head to warm up, each building extends its observatories to charge solar energy.
Two 35-square-meter Sun Decks-Terraces are available as an option and create a fourth level, accessible from the suites aft area upper deck. These terraces, with the options of secluded dining niches shielded by the bulwarks, offer a vertiginous panoramic view of the mountain ranges.
INTERIOR
Hospitality spaces are distributed on 3 levels, that step up to gain views out into the village, creating a spatial sequence with plateaus of specific activity and experience. The any unit will accommodate from 10 to 20 guests, in Four Master Suites and One Suite, located in the domes' center.
Rooms feature lots of glass on every level to fill the interiors with light in spite of the subterranean design. Spaces are open and shared, as opposed to enclosed and separate. The aesthetics call to mind the ambience of the future, with nostalgia for the sweet memories of the past . . . It remains only to determine from which period to observe.
The loft-type rooms are composed of three decks and branch off from a entrance, which provides private access for the rooms without cutting them off. "Ground deck"-Lobby contains a swimming pool, with a bar and a dining area.
The design is a simple arrangement of spaces within a predominantly open plan. A main sleeping space opens over the living area and is paired with a spacious bathroom. Sleeping accommodation is augmented by a bedroom with a double bunkbed.
The balconies and "terrace-observatories" provide completely uninterrupted breathtaking views, while accumulating the sun’s energy for the cool mountain night.
A maximum of modularity is foreseen for all the guest areas. Double-height spaces ensure maximum views, and create a clean, sweeping shape that facilities guests movement while creating bright and generous spaces. The result is a seamless connection between all of the various decks, design elements, and the surrounding environment.
Plenty of chillout time "aboard" is guaranteed by the expansive "beach club", located on the "ground deck" of eny dome. The "beach club" represents a transition between lobby and private areas: a wine bar which leaves the stern free for a magnificent mini-beach and swimming pool areas with subtropical plants and birds, living in cages whose doors are always open. The humid area is isolated by glass curtains and can easily be transformed into a comfortable meeting room, ballroom or space for chamber concerts of classical or jazz music.
CONSTRUCTION TECHNOLOGY and ENERGY SAVING STRATEGIES
The hills that embrace the structures stabilize the temperature inside with the thermal inertia of underground spaces. This technique provides significant thermal mass, reducing the need for energy-intensive air conditioning.
Built with fiber-reinforced polymer/concrete and wood, the buildings are lightweight, waterproof, mold-resistant, impervious to rot and infestations, and offer infinite design possibilities. Flexible and durable, the structures will last for hundreds of years with minimal maintenance.
The domes are constructed in the ground, with the front of the structure peeking out. The earth berms on the sides of the structures and on the roof are structured in such a way that they actually contribute to the stability and strength of the finished structure instead of being a dead load.
The buildings are almost fully self-sustainable and run on solar, thermal and hydropower, while acting as little Alternative Energy Centers, where PCM thermal storage panels are installed into the terrain, floor and roof fabrics. When cooling is required, we use the night temperature and cool river-water for pre-cooling. And in winter - the system draws warm air into the building during the day. Then stored energy (that was charged into the PCM and terrain during the day time or warm seasons), is restored to the area during nighttime heat demand, simply by changing the air-flow direction of the pumps. When additional heating or cooling is required, the air heat pumps only need to change the temperature by a few degrees to provide air at the desired temperature.
The ground layer is covered by an “Umbrella" membrane before adding a final layer of topsoil and seeding it with grass. “Umbrella" is an innovative concept of sustainable building, saving a lot of energy. It insulates the soil that surrounds it, in this way keeping the entire structure warm.
In summer, solar heat radiates in, falls on internal surfaces, and is absorbed into the surrounding soil. The umbrella traps heat in the dry soil until winter, when it migrates back into the living spaces. In effect, the umbrella raises this constant temperature zone to the surface and allows the house to warm it further.
The ski slope is also designed to collect summer rainwater, and spring melting water, as it is channeled into series of buried storage containers, spread under the slpoe. This water is used around the village and in the hotel. A large amount of water in spring, has allowed us to mount a mini hydro-electro station, instaling water pipeline in the fonicolar tunnel, which has impressive inclination and length. The water system will optimise the melted water flues and will, drasticaly reduce - dange of landslides, as well.