"Beyond survival: life within architecture. Reception centre for Rohingya women in the refugee camp

The question of how much it affects people's identity and soul to live through experiences where survival is at risk, such as having to take refuge in a refugee camp is an intense, profound and rare question. One that has the power to change reality

In the Ukhiya&Teknaf refugee camp in Bangladesh, architect Rizvi Hassan responds to this question by creating a meeting place where the architecture is not merely the fragile bamboo and straw walls it is made of, but the energy of the form that reflects the protection of the womb, the sensations of union and connection

And even more than the mimicry of the materials that make this reception centre for Rohingya women a perfectly integrated part of the landscape, the setting for the majestic elephant walks, the architecture of the Beyond Survival centre is more intent than a material, it is function: it is the care of the soul of these women who have experienced violence, it is the reconstruction of a peaceful inner space through encounter, dialogue and the sharing of their experiences; it is the prospect of dedicating themselves to art and to caring for themselves

Architecture here does not celebrate its own identity, but frees itself of its physical composition and becomes the encounters and gestures of the women; it becomes the desire of the men in the camp, who help build the centre, to involve their families in the activities; it becomes the souls of the women who find a bit of peace and will be its medium in their own homes... Here architecture, on the fringes of survival, goes "Beyond survival" and takes the privilege of becoming the actual existence it contains

For full details about the project here is the link to Beyond Survival: a safe space for Rohingya women and girls