Description
The Taqwa mosque, a five-story structure, has been renovated and extended to merge with the surrounding landscape of green and Dhanmondi Lake. The renovation took inspiration from Masjid Navibi, ensuring clarity of expression between the original mosque and the extension. The new extension features terrace gardens on the north and east side, creating an open platform for visitors to enjoy the landscape and the lake view. The exterior façade is kept permeable to allow natural elements to diffuse through the terraces and into the interior, while the louvers channel breezes, enhance cross ventilation, and maintain privacy from outside observers. The mosque's façade treatment includes brick masonry, wooden louvers, and exposed steel truss, with the wooden calligraphy of Qalma Tahiba adding a pause to the vertical monotony by louvers. The load-bearing structure was sensitively restructured, with the load transferred to re-strengthened columns and load-bearing walls. The existing dome was replaced by a fiberglass dome to reduce weight on the structure, and non-structural members were removed to create an open white prayer hall on every floor.
