Radiant Campus
Aljamea-tus-Saifiyah nairobi, kenya Based on the principles of Fatemi culture, FXFOWLE | SCHWARTZ envisioned an educational campus organized outwards from the light and knowledge. All buildings are oriented North-South towards the Kaaba, Mecca. Sacred buildings are "gathered" around the central Sahat. The Masjid and Ewan ul Barakaat are primary, placed to the North and South. They are flanked East and West by the "public" buildings that comprise this Sacred Core: Mahad uz Zahra, Mamal, Mawaid as well as the Auditorium and Welcome Center. In response to the rectangular proportions of the site, the Sahat radiates outwards East-West, connecting all parts of the campus. With Nairobi near the equator, this is also the diurnal path of the sun (light). The existing urban geometry is used to advantage, creating physical "rays" from the center and heightening views in both directions. The Sahat creates four quadrants in the plan, containing smaller-scale Academic and Residential courtyards framed by buildings that form a virtual "live-learn community" during the evening hours. Their physical expressions become more contemporary and abstract as their distance from the center increases. The talabat (male students) and taalebaat (female students) are located at opposite sides of the campus, which in turn preserves the dignity of women as emphasized in the Quran. 2012 - present (under construction)