The Sacred Leaves Pavilion, designed by Atelier Daniel Florez, is a structure constructed from timber and bamboo. Its aim is to foster an ecosystem that promotes dialogue and respects the surrounding environment. The pavilion is designed to be removable, transportable, and recyclable, in line with the principles of a circular economy.
The project is called "Folhas Sagradas" in Portuguese, which translates to "Sacred Leaves" in English. The pavilion is located on the property of Kilombo Vilas Hotel hotel in the Northeast of Brazil, situated in front of a beach that is home to turtles and dolphins. In 2021, architects began transforming the hotel into a carbon-neutral establishment.
Transitions through day and night
During the day, the strong tropical sun is softened by the sea breeze from the trade winds, which blow from the southeast almost year-round, constantly moving the clouds. The pavilion's structure, made of Glue Laminated Timber and bamboo, creates a shaded and ventilated space beneath a polycarbonate roof. Its shadow projects the shape of three leaves, which appear, move, and disappear in harmony with the surrounding ecosystem—clouds, wind, and sun.
At night, warm artificial light filters through the polycarbonate roof, illuminating three sacred leaves that are visible from the balconies of the hotel villas. The sight of the floating leaves in the forest, along with their shadows, is meant to serve as a poetic reminder to visitors about the importance of nature preservation.
Materials used
GLT timber is sourced from reforestation areas. Other materials include bamboo, natural stone, and a white sand draining floor which returns the water to the aquifers.
The lamps, designed with the NYC architectural lighting office of Natalia Priwin, are made with recycled parts of bamboo hung from the beams by copper cylinders, a material chosen to express the passage of time with its greenish oxidation generated by the salty winds from the ocean.
The wooden columns encircling the space recall a classical seafront portico. Sculpted in anthropomorphic form, each rises to 2.3 meters—the same height as the Caryatids of the Erechtheion temple in Athens, built around 420 BC as a sanctuary to Poseidon, god of the sea. The roof’s double-curved geometry casts shifting shadows across the pavilion’s equally curved columns, each one subtly distinct. Like the grand temples of the Acropolis, every column has its own identity, echoing the diversity and equality found in natural ecosystems.
