Kemeri National Park Visitor Center

The Kemeri National Park is the third-largest national park in Latvia. Latvia has been described as a vast, unspoilt parkland that is a texture of lakes, marshes and forests. The park is home to countless species of birds and wildlife, with a varied untouched landscape. It is home to a wide range of fauna – flora including rare birds that were reintroduced into this unique ecosystem with some help from the World Wildlife Fund. The Visitor Centre is settled in the Kemeri National Park to create a junction point, creating this way a new sequence of relationships between the landscape, nature, the flora and fauna, and the visitors. The relationship between nature and people as a place to stay and regard.

The concept of project depends on;

People

Visitor centre layout is planned seperately for the campers and visitors, who are the main user group of the field. The masses were placed on the basis of the pedestrian routes to be needed. In order to facilitate access to the required unit, visual axis were created.

Ecosystem 

The masses was raised from the ground based on the preservation of the natural texture of the area. It is aimed to minimize the damage to the fauna of the Kemeri National Park. With the influence of traditional Latvian architecture, local material was preferred to provide solutions with sustainable, low-maintenance and cost effective.

Square

The Visitor Centre is planned as a assembly area and a transition point for the park. An area is planned where visitors can spend time at the intersection of the transition axis.

Story

The view of Kemeri National Park is a multilayered of various ecosystems; forests, fields, meadows, marsh and lakes. Along the main road the visitors overcome from a dense layering of trees. The forest comes to end and the fields begin in formations of various grasses.Layers of tall grass and flowers experience until it meets the low marsh and the path. The path continues through the marshes as far as the tower, at sunset migrating birds are observed. The story of wild nature.

• Project Name Kemeri National Park Visitor Center
• Typology Competition, Public, Urban Design
• Location Latvia
• Year 2018