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Joshua Tree, California
Competition, 2020
Yael Greenberg
Wellness and Spiritual Retreat Center
10,000 Square Feet
Located in the Mojave Desert just outside Joshua Tree National Park, Sanctuary for Stillness is a new health and wellness retreat center designed to inspire personal reflection and foster a deep connection with the natural world. Developed as part of an invited competition, the program called for a series of gathering spaces on a gently sloping desert site that transitions into a rocky hillside.
The project is defined by a 700 diameter open air ring which emerges from the hillside to float above the desert floor, connecting a six pavilions anchored around the perimete, each focusing the experience of the individual on a different aspect of the natural desert environment.
The Sunrise Pavilion, oriented due east to greet the morning light.
The Sunken Desert Garden, which immerses visitors below the ring into the heart of the desert.
The Solstice Pavilion, aligned precisely with the geometry of the solstice sunset.
The Mountain Gallery, carved into the rocky hillside and illuminated from above.
The Temple, a communal gathering space opening the center of the ring adjacent to a spring-fed water feature.
T.W. Ryan, Thomas Ryan, Marshall Leng