Since October 2019, a series of events have unfolded consecutively and changed the everyday life in Lebanon. After the onset of the financial crisis, the coronavirus widespread and the terrible blast at the harbor of Beirut, life as we know it have changed. The extreme life conditions in Lebanon are persisting and worsening with the electricity and fuel shortages which is limiting commuting and work schedules. These life changing circumstances have similarly affected all generations and imposed new rhythms to daily life. In this studio we concentrate on the life of University Students that have been suffering significant disruption in their financial, social, cultural and educational life. The new rising challenges are constraining the life of most university students with difficulty to commute to their universities, to pay their tuition fees, to find living spaces near their campuses etc. Students are looking for corners to study where electricity is available till late nights and ways to earn money to help finance their studies. The proposed studio project aims at researching a contemporary “student center” with mixed used facilities for collective forms of learning, temporary living, working and socializing. All aspects of sustainability and efficiency are a core element in designing. This contemporary Student Center will also serve the community with uncommon possibilities and space permutations.
Occupying part of Supermarket Fahed in Furn el Chebbak, the projects respond to both a dynamic context and a structured building skeleton.