Excerpt: Black Bunny Club by I-con Architects & Urban Planners is a contemporary hospitality hub that offers recreational activities for various age groups. The design emphasizes temporal and flexible spaces, reflecting the dynamic nature of the facility. Its architectural language is influenced by industrial aesthetics, using exposed brick, metal structures, and colonial-style arched windows, creating a blend of raw and refined elements.
Project Description
[Text as submitted by architect] The Black Bunny Club, situated in a vibrant area of Surat, emerges as a contemporary hospitality hub designed to cater to diverse age groups through a wide array of recreational activities. This multi-modal recreational arena integrates sports, fitness, and gaming zones within a singular, cohesive space, embodying a vision of seamless activity and vibrant community engagement.
The inspiration behind the Black Bunny Club was rooted in the idea of creating a holistic space where fitness and recreation converge, fostering a lively atmosphere for social interaction. The design concept emphasizes temporal and flexible spaces, reflecting the dynamic nature of the activities hosted within the facility. The selection of distinctive indoor sports like taekwondo, badminton, shooting, swimming, and table tennis, combined with outdoor activities such as a rope course, trampoline park, and arcade games, underscores the ambition to offer a unique, comprehensive recreational experience. The architectural language of the project was influenced by industrial aesthetics, seen in the use of exposed brick, metal structures, and colonial-style arched windows, creating a blend of raw and refined elements that resonate with the vibrant energy of the space.
The spatial configuration of the Black Bunny Club is driven by functionality and accessibility. The building is divided into two primary zones: the club and the game zone, each with its own reception area. This division is not only horizontal but also vertical, with double-height spaces strategically positioned to enhance visual connectivity and create a dynamic flow between different activity areas.
The cuboid structure, measuring 30m x 53m x 11.5m, occupies only one-third of the site, leaving the remaining area for outdoor activities and essential services like parking and green spaces. The placement of the building along the east façade maximizes visibility and interaction with the surrounding urban environment, while the uniform skin of exposed red brick and black colonial-style arched windows ties the diverse internal spaces together into a coherent whole. Even the compound wall and the canopy over the semi-covered café, constructed from hollow clay blocks interwoven with metal rafters exude a raw and rustic character. The interior design contrasts bright, vibrant colors with dark grey and charcoal tones, reinforcing the industrial aesthetic while creating an energetic and welcoming atmosphere for visitors.
One of the primary challenges in the project was optimizing the use of the 7,700-square-meter site while addressing the constraints of land consumption and the need for large volumes for specific indoor activities. Balancing the dual requirements of creating a striking, visually appealing façade along a busy road, and preserving privacy for more intimate activities deeper within the plot, demanded a nuanced approach to spatial planning. The decision to avoid using trusses for large spans, as advised by structural consultants, required innovative engineering solutions to maintain structural integrity without compromising on the architectural vision.
Drawings
Images
