The Art of Playful Design A Look Inside BRAC University’s Child-Centric Sanctuary
A new chapter in early childhood care begins with the opening of the second BRAC University Daycare Centre, located in the vibrant Badda Campus of BRAC University, Dhaka. This thoughtfully designed facility serves as a sanctuary for children up to eight years old, offering a nurturing environment that prioritizes safety and development. Designed by Dwm4 Intrends, with an enchanting lighting scheme from Miro Lighting, the daycare centre is a dynamic and imaginative world where play, learning, and exploration intertwine, creating a joyful space for the children. A Palette of Softness and Imagination The daycare’s core design philosophy is built on a foundation of softness and playfulness. The space is defined by a serene Scandinavian colour palette of pastel shades—soft pinks, blues, and greens—that create a calming and inviting atmosphere. This selection of soft hues was a conscious decision to create a tranquil environment where children feel secure and at ease. Central to the design, this concept is also considered in all edges and volumes and is evident in the custom-made modular furniture, which features rounded edges to prevent bruises and generously cushioned surfaces for comfort. Thoughtful Zoning for a Comfortable Experience The daycare’s layout is thoughtfully divided into two primary zones: public and private. The public zone serves as a welcoming entry point for parents, where mothers can drop off their kids, change their clothes, or feed them. This area features an ergonomically designed washroom with sinks and toilets at child-friendly heights. The private zone is the heart of the daycare. It features a common activity area for all kids—a dynamic space for interaction, play, and learning. Adjacent to this is a sound-insulated nap room, a peaceful sanctuary exclusively for toddlers. This segregated room ensures a quiet and restful environment for sleep, with secure storage above the beds for personal belongings. This approach prioritises the comfort of children while ensuring that parents experience a sense of security and peace of mind. Materials in Design That Engage and Inspire The interiors reflect a calm design approach that is both impressive and functional. The vinyl floors are a durable choice, providing a soft, child-friendly surface that is easy to maintain. The walls are adorned with CNC-cut plywood cutouts that form geometric origami-style animals, such as giraffes and kangaroos, adding a unique texture and depth to the space. A notable feature of interior design is the vertical rock-climbing wall made from panels with child-friendly grips. This equipment helps the young children develop strength through adventurous play and is designed for those aged 4.5 years and older. This interactive design maximises floor space for other activities while promoting physical activity and overall development. When integrating an indoor climbing wall into a playroom, the child’s developmental stages and sensory needs were well-considered to ensure a stimulating and safe environment. Architect Daniel Haque shares, “Children at this age have a lot of curiosity and love to learn from playful shapes, so several playful interactive elements were incorporated in the design.” Overhead, snowflakes on the ceiling and house-shaped shelves on the walls introduce a sense of whimsy and also serve as visual cues to guide children. For hands-on learning, a pair of yellow, popsicle-shaped whiteboards is placed strategically, offering a fun way for children to express their creativity and learn. The pencil-shaped steel columns and child-sized furniture are used throughout the space, including a specially designed sofa that draws inspiration from the iconic “La Mamma” piece near the entrance, scaled down to suit the proportions of young children. The “La Mamma” furniture concept, also known as “Big Mama” or “Donna,” refers to Gaetano Pesce’s Up armchair. This iconic piece, introduced in 1969, is characterised by its distinctive shape and was initially made of foam. The armchair’s design has become a symbol of design and feminism, and a modern design classic. Prioritising Safety in Every Detail Safety was the number one priority throughout the design process. Architect Daniel Haque emphasises, “Special consideration was taken to soften all the edges; there’s no sharp corner here. Every edge has been wrapped with fabric. All switches and sockets are also placed above children’s height so that they can’t access them.” The furniture, floor, and wall materials were all selected with durability and safety in mind, proving that a playful and beautiful design can be achieved without compromising on security. This vibrant daycare was effectively designed by the lead architectural team of Mamnoon M. Chowdhury, Mahmudul Anwar Riyaad, Daniel Haque, and Md. Arifur Rahman. They worked in close association with architects Hasib Rehan and Md. Raduan Ahmed, and the construction was executed by Ar. Arifuzzaman Khan, Engr. Md. Omor Faruque, and Engr. Md. Tareq Rana, to create a practical environment specifically designed to meet the needs of young children. Written By Samira Ahsan
Tradition Wrapped In Modernity: Terracotta Tales
In the fast-moving pace of Dhaka city, do we not all feel the need to slow down, away from the chaos, experience the presence of the surroundings, and stay in the moment? Inside the premises of the Tejgaon branch of Aarong, Terracotta Tales pays homage to the local craftsmanship. It is a place dedicated to the warm and sentimental dishes and the comforting and heartfelt ambiance that make us long for home. Rafia Mariam Ahmed, principal architect of Hive Architects, designed this beautiful restaurant having intimate dialects with details. When an individual experiences space, what does make one recall it? What works there is the phrase: “design is in the details.” The goal of embracing details is to get you to think critically and present the best possible solution —right from the beginning. That is why details are important. They can keep us coming back, or they can keep us from coming back. And definitely, that comes from a good number of researches. Terracotta Tales is one such location where traditional village home details are infused into a minimal modern portrayal. Terracotta Tales and the adjacent bakery, Dough Diaries, are in a joint venture with Aarong. They are one of the restaurants under the Emerald Restaurants, with other operational restaurants being: Thai Emerald, The Red Chamber, Grove, Trouvaille, Gusto, and Emerald Bakery. The structure the restaurant belongs to was initially designed by Vitti Sthapati Brindo Ltd. alongside the Aarong outlet. The outlook of the structure, starting from the large openings, landscape, and interior to the detailed texture on the outer surface – all were later added as the journey of designing this tale began. The theme and menu of the tale were to be Bengali cuisine, from where conceptualisation of the space began. “I started going back to our roots of being a Bengali. I wanted to pick the elements so rich with history, which had been used daily in our culture, for so many years, and blend these elements with modernity. I wanted to design a space that would take us back to where we belong, a place more oriented towards slow living,” Ms Rafia shared. The space is an abstract representation of a mud house, the softness of which is found in the details of rounded corners of walls, doors, and windows. The unevenly matte polished surfaces with raw, warm earthy colours take you to the affection of the rural aura. Even at night, the lighting is as such to create the ambiance of a warm-toned hue of “prodeep” (dimmed fire lamp). The centre light pieces are delicately handwoven cane shades. Terracotta has been used in many details of this space. In the shade of the walkway, with that of the semi-outdoor space on the rooftop, and the centre of attraction is the wall of the stairway that leads to the rooftop dining. The wall is composed of thin slates of terracotta tiles arranged in triangular patterns, which creates dialects with the light from the sky at different hours of the day. The lanterns used in the rooftop space are also custom-made of burnt clay. As clay is a vital component of humans, country, and roots, the concept and name were associated with terracotta to represent its power of affection. Tales of local artists and craftsmen were incorporated into the design by the use of cane lanterns and clay lamp shades and the famous “Tepa Putul” (a local handmade clay doll of a specific style). Potters and artists made larger sizes of these usual small-scale dolls that are placed on niches as commonly seen in the mud houses. Framed rustic metal jewelry and decorative mirror are added to the wall to represent the daily used materials in a rural mud house. The landscape is designed to wrap an individual with nature. The restaurant is pedestrian-only, with no vehicular connectivity directly, focusing on the practice of being close to nature. The walkway has a beautiful line of bamboo trees on one side and specifically selected floral trees on the other. There is also an outdoor sitting area where the hard surface meets the green in an undulating line. A small body of water curves along the structure is an abstract form of “pukur” (a pond) as commonly seen in the rural context. Ms Rafia said, “The mere attempt was to get out of the edged effect of modern city life to a more mellow and soulful experience – Where one can only indulge in the presence of themselves, the company, and, of course, the food. The trees shed flowers and leaves, creating an inviting bed of nature for the people exploring the outdoors. The curved walkways toward Dough Dairies also give you a feel of the rural memories.” The subconscious nostalgia with the cane-woven furniture details makes one reminisce childhood memories from the ancestral homes. The utility area has been partitioned with cane-weaved partitions to camouflage it in the interior. The wooden curtain rails and the door handles add value to the theme, complementing the colour palette. A few subtle colours are added by using a floral print material on the back of the seats, preventing the guests from feeling monotonous. Old ceramic plates are decorated on the wall, making a spectacular composition of colours, history, and belongingness. On a bright sunny afternoon, when the sun kisses the shallow water next to the large window with curtains of translucent softness, the sheening glitter of the rippling water reflecting on the ceiling catches one’s attention while being indulged in the nostalgic local cuisine. The soul runs through the handcrafted details and the softness of the ambiance makes one feel warm, cozy, and at home. The modern city crowd is so much more over-oriented towards a captivated lifestyle that even a natural splash of water becomes a form of irritation. Terracotta Tales is a space to celebrate that naturally unnatural necessity of life that people are slowly getting carried away from. Authored by Rehnuma Tasnim Sheefa
Delifrance’s baked items are made with flour from the Grands Moulins de Paris, a major French milling company operating since 1919. The recipes served follow the franchise standards, and the new recipes also get approved by Paris. Hence, the international-quality chefs bring to the table a range of savoury dishes alongside croissants and other finger foods.
