Commissioned by Calvin Zhao, founder of Octave Institute, the project allowed Tomás Contreras to extend the Mediatecture proposition he had been developing during his years at Gensler and translate it directly into Zhao's brief for an immersive ballroom experience at Sangha Retreat. The result was an architectural concept in which large-scale interactive media surfaces could transform one of the retreat's event spaces into a fully immersive environment.
The vision proposed a 360-degree spatial experience where architecture, light, digital content and human interaction merged into a responsive environment capable of hosting cultural events, performances and experiential gatherings. This initiative marked one of Contreras' earliest explorations into media architecture and immersive spatial storytelling within hospitality environments — ideas that would later evolve into his broader work in experiential and AI-driven spatial design. Sangha Retreat itself was conceived as a curated destination with contributions from internationally acclaimed architects and designers, later receiving recognition as an award-winning hospitality retreat.