House Of Elements, Łódź
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Type : Zoological Pavilion
Location : Orientarium Zoo Łódź, Poland
Size : 6,000 Sq.m.
Year : 2026
Status : First Prize, International Architectural Competition
Scope : Architecture / Interior Design

The House of Elements is a zoological pavilion designed as a fully narrative building at Orientarium Zoo in Łódź, Poland. Rather than a conventional exhibition, the architecture tells the story of how the classical elements have shaped life on Earth. Visitors follow a continuous one-way journey descending underground into Earth before rising through Ice, Water and Fire, and Air, encountering the animals and environments that define each stage of evolution. The building holds this narrative within its structure: a spiral path that pushes outward, shaping the facade like a vessel containing the path of life within.

Our Concept:
One Seed. A Thousand Growths.

A zoo is a place where we witness evolution. Life adapting across climates, continents, and time. Our proposal asks: what if the pavilion did the same?

A single generative form adapts differently across the project, responding to each condition it meets. At the entrance pavilion, the seed spreads overhead as canopy, timber ribs fanning outward to carry a living green roof that welcomes visitors at human scale. On the main building, the same form wraps the facade as bark, a protective skin of engineered bamboo lamellas with pockets for ventilation and light. In the central courtyard, it rises as terraced enclosure around the sea lion pool. At the cafe and aviary, it merges into planted roof decks, seating platforms, and ramps that weave around the habitats.

The forms are related, not repeated. Each belongs to where it emerged.

Elements Cafe at treetop level above the Gateway Pavilion, with undulating timber roof topped by meadow greenery. Elevated walkways connect to aviaries while visitors gather in the garden courtyard below.
Close-up of the bark facade system for House of Elements, showing vertical bamboo lamella profiles rising like tall planters with green roof caps. The timber screen wraps the spiral pavilion as a continuous protective skin.

Sea Lion Courtyard

The sea lion pool anchors the heart of the building, a calm core around which the entire journey revolves. As visitors ascend through Ice, Water and Fire, and Air, the circular courtyard remains present through glimpses and openings, offering orientation and pause. Planted terraces step down toward the water, greenery softening edges while light catches the surface below.

The courtyard is designed to contain the loudest moment at the spatial heart of the building. Four layers of acoustic mitigation work together: acoustic glazing, planted terraces and green walls that absorb and scatter sound, angled ceiling baffles that redirect noise upward, and strategic programming that places sensitive species furthest from the courtyard. The stepped inner facade wraps the bowl with deep planters and corridors as buffers, keeping surrounding habitats calm while the sea lions perform at the center.

Sea lion courtyard at the heart of the evolution spiral, with stepped timber seating around a central pool. Planted terraces rise in layers above, providing acoustic buffering while visitors on the spiral path glimpse down from multiple levels.

The Journey Through the Elements

The path begins with a descent into Earth, a darkened passage through soil and stone where visitors walk beneath the landscape. Ice surprises with a bright semi-outdoor courtyard before entering glacial corridors, where spectacled bears roam rocky terrain viewed from an elevated walkway that cuts into the enclosure. Water flows with fluid lines and tropical reflections, where manatee tanks rise above head height and circular voids punch through to the level above, connecting water and canopy. Fire erupts with volcanic formations and giant tortoise habitats split between indoor and outdoor zones beneath a branching ETFE membrane roof.

Air opens to sky. The walkway splits and weaves through double-height enclosures of spider monkeys and tree kangaroos at canopy level, real trees growing from the floor below and rising through the space. The journey concludes at the Future zone, where living moss walls, mirrored installations, and still water pose a final question: humans as the fifth element, the future undecided.

Manatee habitat in the Water and Fire zone, with floor-to-ceiling aquarium glass and circular skylights punching through to the Air zone above. Trees grow from tank level through the voids, connecting water and canopy in one vertical experience.
  • Giant tortoise habitat in the Fire zone, featuring volcanic orange ceiling panels with ethnic patterns, rocky terrain, and ETFE membrane roof. Branching walkways with glass flooring allow visitors to observe tortoises from above.

    FIRE

  • Earth zone sunken passage with curved rammed earth walls and timber ceiling. Visitors descend underground past Lucy the Australopithecus robot guide, beginning the evolutionary journey at life's origin beneath the landscape.

    EARTH

  • Penguin habitat in the Ice zone with panoramic curved glass showing underwater and above-water views. Icy blue interior with rocky Antarctic terrain, seating for extended viewing, and educational displays along the spiral path.

    ICE

  • Air zone with new world monkeys in a double-height canopy habitat. Visitors walk at treetop level on elevated paths while monkeys roam branches below. ETFE membrane roof floods the space with daylight.

    AIR

  • Future zone with capybara habitat beneath a clear glass roof, featuring living moss walls and chrome sculptural pieces. Timber deck ramps curve past the enclosure as the evolutionary journey concludes with a zen-like atmosphere.

    FUTURE

House Of Elements / Masterplan

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