Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community

Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community 

La Cabina de la Curiosidad

Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio

INTERNS
Samuel Dano, Marianne Letessier

DESIGN MANAGEMENT AND CONSTRUCTION
Marie Combette, Daniel Moreno Flores

CONSTRUCTION
Comunidad De Shalalá + La Cabina De La Curiosidad

STRUCTURAL CONSULTING
Patricio Cevallos

PHOTOGRAPHS
Marie Combette, Jag Studio, Samanta Martinez

YEAR
2024

LOCATION
Zumbagua, Ecuador

CATEGORY
Community Center

Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© Marie Combette

Text description provided by architect.

We are at the summit of the Quilotoa Lagoon, a volcanic crater with turquoise water at 3,915 meters above sea level.

The indigenous community of Shalalá promotes sustainable tourism in symbiosis with nature, valuing and magnifying it.

Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© Samanta Martinez

They have a wooden viewpoint (built-in 2013) that enhances the experience with the lagoon, along with tourist infrastructure, and now a crafts center that, through its circular form, seeks to offer the same opportunity for each stall.

With its cobblestone central plaza, it becomes a space that fosters gatherings and celebrations. The crafts center is called Chaki Wasi, which in Kichwa means "house made of straw from the ground up."

Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio

INNOVATION

Chaki Wasi's aspiration is to represent Andean culture through traditional vernacular techniques and serve as an educational platform to showcase a way of living in the Andean landscape.

It is built with river stone foundations, a structure made of eucalyptus wood tied with cabuya (fiber from the agave plant), and supported with large dowels of chakra (small pieces of young eucalyptus wood).

Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio

The hammer used to drive the dowels was a large wooden mallet; all the fastenings are made with repeatedly used chakllas, and the large roof covering is made of straw.

There is a vision of regenerating the community's land, living in harmony with nature, being carbon-positive, and returning waste to the earth. The future outlook is rooted in the wisdom and territorial knowledge of the past.

Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio

EMANCIPATION

This is a construction based on communal logic; those in charge rotated weekly. Permanent mingas (collective work parties) were held with the participation of women, men, and youth from the community.

Interesting links were formed with neighboring communities to obtain wood and straw.

Everything was built by hand, with minimal tools, and the structural modules were raised and placed with everyone's strength, thanks to ropes and collective unity.

Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio

When placing the straw, there was a transmission of vernacular knowledge, and we celebrated each stage according to Andean culture and worldview.

ADAPTABILITY

There is an intergenerational transmission of knowledge and culture in ways of doing, in rites, and customs. Culture is sustained through co-designing and co-constructing, and architecture is democratized as a fundamental asset for human development and the environment.

Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© Samanta Martinez


Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© Marie Combette
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio


Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
© JAG Studio


Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community


Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
Soil Regeneration - Ilustration Marie Combette
Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
Section - Ilustration Marie Combette

Chaki Wasi, Artisanal Center of the Shalalá Community
Planimetry