Architecture Design Project
Project 1
Project 1a of Architecture Design Project was a group project that requires students to come up with a detailed site analysis following our site visit at the intersection of Jalan P. Ramlee and Jalan Sultan Ismail, Kuala Lumpur. We were tasked to produce a board summarising the urban contextual analysis, site history, activities, climatic conditions, demographics and other salient contextual information, to be processed together with examples of cultural hub projects and precedent studies that we explored. The goal of this project was to explore design possibilities for the upcoming project, in which students were to design a cultural hub for Jalan P. Ramlee.
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Project 2
The final project of the semester is the culmination of the skills and knowledge gained from previous projects in Semester 6 and earlier semesters. The project calls for the design of a cultural hub at the intersection of Jalan P. Ramlee and Jalan Sultan Ismail in Kuala Lumpur, as a project that responds to the site context and gives back to the community, i.e. the local youth and tourists on site.
The design process begins with the formulation of a strong concept. A strong concept can be derived from various means, including via observations on site, responding to an impending issue, proposing a design manifesto, programmatic implementations and other methods that will form an anchor for the design process. My design concept was derived from an observation on site, which was then connected to the demographics of the social context and the definition of a cultural hub. The formulated concept was referred to time and again as the design was developed until the very end.
For the cultural hub, the concept was "SukaReka" a makerspace with a twist. Instead of cutting edge technologies, the cultural hub uses traditional tools used in the making of wayang kulit, woodcrafting and batik painting in the makerspace for youths to explore and to be showcased to tourists on site. The main idea is to create a common meeting point for all communities, which will eventually create a unique identity for Jalan P. Ramlee, one that is greater than the sum of its parts.
Reflections
Perhaps the most important question after the wrap-up of each studio module is "what new things have I gained from this semester?". And the answer to that is always "A Lot." So to begin summarising it is not an easy task. But from all of the topics covered in Studio 6; the programmatic inclusion into the design process, the structural implementation of a much larger building, practicality considerations, etc., perhaps the most important lesson learnt during the semester is the translation of a strong concept into a workable final design which requires rigorous design consideration.
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A design must be an inclusive process that calls for tackling a myriad of issues with an ingenious solution. The design process should never be done with a tunnel vision whereby one issue is tackled at a time, but a wholesome process that takes everything into consideration. For example, when one is planning the spaces, the materiality, elevation, openings, programmatic implementations and other factors must be consistent and thoughtfully designed together along the way.​
Taylor's Graduate Capabilities​
