CONVENTION CENTRE 99

Intersecting curvilinear volumes create a large convention center in Ahmedabad city in India.
The client’s brief included the creating of a divisible multifunctional hall that could be used for exhibitions & conventions with a large landscaped open space.
Public congregation areas skirt the main convention halls on all sides allowing the simultaneous use of the hall by dividers for different functions at the same time. When used as a single hall the break out pre function area on all sides allow the large number of people to disperse along the perimeter to allied functions & cafeterias. To facilitate the extensive parking requirements, the convention hall is elevated above a large parking podium. The stilt floor along with the single basements meet the required parking.
Perforated walls have been used as a climate control measure, inspired from intricately patterned screens or ‘Jaalis’ that are a typical feature of many buildings in India, where they would traditionally have been hand cut by skilled craftsmen.
Perforated screened walls in exposed concrete, along the perimeter allow natural light into all the pre function and service areas whilst mitigating the heat gain in response to the hot desert climate of the location. Temperatures in Ahmedabad city are in excess of 36°C for most of the year. Perforations in walls allow light and air to enter the room while minimizing the glare of the sun and the gazes of the passers-by. They also create a subtle play of light and shadow in the interior, emphasizing the characteristics of symmetry by forming interesting patterns.
Two car parking basements provide the extensive parking requirement. The entire convention hall is stilted to provide easy accessibility to transport and service vehicles that would facilitate the constant transforming elements of changing exhibitions.
A series of intersecting ovoid volumes create open terrace spaces that punctuate all the pre function areas. The main convention hall is sky lit from the northern side to suffuse the internal space with indirect light through a series of curved concrete undulating roofs. The roof therefore while filtering light lends a sculptural quality to the exhibition halls in day light but also doubles up as a sculptural element.
Contextually responsive, the Convention Centre 99 is a cohesive amalgamation of multi-functional public spaces rendered sculpturally, creating a much-needed public space for the city of Ahmedabad.