Hines Conscient – Elevate, Gurugram
Seamlessly Integrating the Built with the Green.
A retreat from city life, this abode is nestled in the middle of a forest, completely one with nature. The design for the showcase apartment at Hines Conscient in Gurugram, blurs boundaries between the built space and the natural forest expanse through a biophilic design approach, with seamless integration of inside and outside. The horizontal layering of trees acts as a buffer against the noise from the surrounding areas. In contrast, lightweight metal structures, glass and wood have been used as primary materials to enable quick construction, dismantling, and re-use. Abundant natural lighting, easy ventilation and verdant views are just some of the privileges of living close to nature here.
The visitor is greeted with a narrow pathway on entry, wrapped in an enclosing thicket of overarching trees. It trails up to a circular courtyard with a sculpture at its nucleus, that embodies the aesthetics of grace, harmony and serenity. This courtyard connects to the building through a dynamic walkway peppered with abundant tropical trees and blossoming petunia flower beds on either side, activating the pedestrian experience and crafting a blissful forest-like environment. Steeped in a contemporary theme, the design also nods to rustic simplicity and examples of European aesthetics in the interiors. The structure metaphorically manifests itself as a glass box at the ground level, wrapped in transparent ribbons of glazing and holding up the levitating opaque mass that houses the private enclosed spaces on top.
Within the main dwelling, the ground floor accommodates the experience centre, a lounge, café and the audio-visual room, leading up to the show apartment, kids’ room, a lounge and meeting rooms at the top level. The seating spaces of the reception, outdoor deck, café and lounge, are stitched together around the central courtyard, in an unceasing dialogue with each other and the infinite open sky. The spaces flow into one another and unfold as one moves along, enabling a gradual unwinding of the sensory experience instead of making a colossal impact instantly.
Careful planning allows optimization of spaces and an easy concourse of commodious rooms. The audio-visual room is a theatrical experience that allows the visitors to watch a movie when the screen is down and reveals the model room as the screen lifts, unravelling an added dimension. A specially designed kids’ room allows young families to explore the building in uninterrupted peace while their kids indulge in recreational activities. The staircase is designed using opulent chandeliers to usher the visitors from the lifts towards the stairs in order to make the ascent a part of the enchanting experience.
Taking a cue from the natural surroundings, a soothing play of textures by ribbed wooden cladding and mirror panelling in subdued browns forms the highlight of the living room, accentuated by flooring and furniture in pristine white. A wrap-around balcony ties two bedrooms and a corner of the living room, creating a sizable spill-out space for relaxation and recreation, enabling transcendence into the enveloping quietude. A juxtaposition of coarse with the fine; awe-inspiring artworks adorn the walls of the house, leaving a solid and lingering impression on the minds of the visitor with a recall factor long after they have left.
The design corroborates a dialogue between the experience centre and the show apartments through a similar theme and vocabulary. Envisioned as a boutique hotel, the building is averse to the prevailing treatment of experience centres as an afterthought to housing developments. The ethereal slow-burn experience compels the visitor to sit and ponder, escaping in the forest’s therapeutic solitude, away from the outer world, becoming a placid haven that people want to connect to, engage with and inhabit.
