Contemplating and gathering
Movement room
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A clear hall for practicing yoga, dance, martial arts or mindful movement. Its floor, light, air and sound are designed for the body moving barefoot.
What it solves
It gives a safe place to move, stretch and breathe, alone or in a group, with a floor that cushions jumps and an atmosphere that helps concentration. In the tropics it calls for cross ventilation and sun control so practice does not become stifling.
Today
Provide a floating timber floor or one with a cushioning layer, a high ceiling, windows on two sides for the breeze and daylight that does not dazzle. Add a sound-absorbing ceiling, a place to store mats and a waist-high barre if there will be dance.
Common mistake
Laying ceramic tile on hard concrete, which punishes knees and ankles, or enclosing the hall without ventilation until the heat and echo exhaust people before the class ends.
Tomorrow
It can open as a shared neighborhood room, with schedules for children, older people and rehabilitation groups. In warm climates the floor, shade and breeze should do the work so it does not depend on air conditioning.
Fact A floating dance floor usually rises about 5 cm above the slab. If a wheelchair must reach it, that height calls for a ramp at least 60 cm long.
Where it comes from
- 1Kalari of Kerala Kerala, India, since at least the 12th century
The kalari is the place where kalaripayattu is practiced, with a red sand floor, an east-facing entrance and a seven-step altar. - 2Japanese dojo Japan, Buddhist tradition
Its name means place of the way. It was born beside temples as a meditation hall and passed to the martial arts, where one enters barefoot and the floor is cleaned together. - 319th-century ballroom Boston, United States, 1837
Papanti’s ballroom is considered the first floating dance floor in that country, made to cushion the dancers’ steps. - 4Mysore yogashala Mysore, India, 1933
Tirumalai Krishnamacharya opened a yoga school in a wing of the Jaganmohan Palace, with the support of the Maharaja of Mysore.
Appears in the routes
See also
Also in Contemplating and gathering
Diagrams and texts by LDB Arquitectura. They are shared under the CC BY 4.0 license, which allows them to be used and adapted with credit to the source.