Navitat Welcome Center

This welcome center is for a zip line canopy tour in one of the richest centers of biodiversity in the eastern United States.The building reflects the ideology of Navitat conceptually and functionally, and prepares patrons for the exhilaration and contemplation that they are about to experience.  The building was inspired by the genius of the simple horse barn which provides shelter from the elements in its center, and services flanking the sides. The welcome center is organized in three volumes situated upon a plinth that is nestled into the sloping site. In response to the curve of the cove the building’s volumes rotate 5 degrees around the center of the rain garden. The interplay of the angles in the plan spawns a roof that is reflective of two leaves overlaying each other. The translucent clerestory filters the light in a way that is reminiscent of the canopy of the forest.