JAFFNA CULTURAL CENTRE, Sri Lanka

The Jaffna Cultural Centre (JCC), Jaffna, Sri Lanka, is a public building of significant political, cultural and social consequence. Located in the former epicenter of Sri Lanka’s 36 year civil war, it was built as a gift by the Government of India.

Read the article in Finnish here.

A special feature of this project is the extensive use of Finnish Pine wood in a tropical location. We sought an architectural expression that is contemporary and yet historically responsive. The use of Pine wood played an essential role in forming this expression.

The site is located right next to Jaffna’s most venerated public building, the Jaffna Public Library (JPL). Our first task was to respect the presence of this important neighbor.

Our first gesture was to pull back our building to the same built line, creating a garden and forecourt contiguous with the garden of JPL.

The line was reinforced by the introduction of a colonnade – an abstract contemporary element referencing the façade of the public library. The new buildings of JCC were positioned behind this colonnade, only partially visible. The colonnade downplays the new building and appears to in fact extend the spatial presence of JPL across our site as well.  The ‘line of deference’ to a respected neighbor was the crucial first act of design.

Public Square

The Public Square was not a component of the original Brief: It was introduced as part of our Competition entry. A new public waterfront was also introduced by pedestrianizing a vehicular road next to the site.

Before the civil war, an intimate open-air theatre, much-loved by the people of Jaffna, was sited at this same location. JCC celebrates this memory by the creation of a large outdoor art and performance zone at the very same location. The Public Square steps down to the pedestrianized street, forming seating for audiences to watch performances on the waterfront, as well as on a floating stage on the lake.

Cultural References

Religion and its symbols are closely linked to the daily life of Jaffna. It is therefore both acceptable and logical to use symbolism abstracted from religious architecture in secular cultural architecture.

The community of Jaffna holds knowledge and education to be sacred, and the Public Library is regarded as an icon of wisdom. The Learning Spire was therefore created as a new symbol –a temple- of learning, and its architectural symbolism was derived from the spire – Gopuram- of Hindu temples.

Learning Spire

The tower contains a series of learning spaces: multimedia and digital library rooms, discussion spaces, classrooms, studios and cafeterias. The topmost floor features a public exhibition gallery space with terraces on either side offering panoramic views of the city and peninsula.

The 11-floor tower is wrapped in thermal screens of Pine wood strips on all 4 sides – which create the desired architectural symbolism by stepping down to reference the form of a Gopuram

A series of optional materials were considered for the screen – aluminum, terracotta, and others, but in the end, we selected Finnish pinewood – from sustainably grown forests, thermally modified to provide virtually life-long durability. It was chosen due to its effectiveness in thermal screening, low- maintenance, long-life, and architectural character.

The screens shade the harsh sun and let breezes blow through this naturally ventilated building. Due to the resultant low energy requirement, 65-70 percent of the energy needs of the tower can be met by Photo-Voltaic Solar panels mounted on its roof.

The 42mm- wide Lunawood profiles are placed with gaps which allow continuity of views to the horizon. They were meticulously produced and fitted by a team of expert wood craftsmen from India. The screen is composed of 3Mx3M panels and fitted from inside the building – without the need of external scaffolding for installation or maintenance.

Auditorium

The 623 seat Auditorium is dimensioned specifically for dance and drama, and especially for dance forms such as Bharata Natyam where it is crucial for the audience to see the performer’s facial expression.

The design was achieved by aligning circular perforations against solid patterns on layers of veneered plywood to engrave the shapes of palm leaves, while achieving the desired acoustic characteristics.

Cultural Museum

The Cultural Museum lies behind the colonnade which defines JCC’s formal entry. It is a steel and glass structure, which rises behind the white masonry colonnade with a clear physical separation from it – emphasizing their separate identities.

Its ground floor is an open exhibition floor leading directly to the Public Square. On the upper level is the formal museum space. The central exhibit space is topped by a glass skylight, over which is a sculptural steel dome.

Project

Construction began in September 2016 and was completed in March 2020. Contractors were selected through a tender process open to builders from both India and Sri Lanka.

The main structure is of reinforced concrete, but the building includes many sub-specialties. The construction team comprised a large number of specialists, including timber work, steel-work, acoustics, landscaping, furniture, screening, a floating stage etc.