The Youth Monument, Bandung

Design proposal by Hafiz Amirrol, Firman Irmansyah, Edy Subangkit and Michael Lengkey for Public Space Design Competition, IAI, 2009.

Evening Video Presentation: Rem Koolhaas

Architect: Rem Koolhaas (OMA)
Date: Friday, 4 December 2009
Time: 1500 WIB
Venue: Galeri Arsitektur, SAPPK, ITB
Guest Lecturer: Achmad Deni Tardiyana

Preserving the Spirit of 'Guyub' in High Density Dwelling

The idea of the massing layout and clusters configurations is to create a spatial quality where high density dwelling can still be appreciated with a decent quality of open and green space. Each layer of the higher units will have access as if they are still at the ground level. This will allow people to meander around the neighborhood without having to feel that they are being separated by the multi-layered building structure, and will also allow a more permeable collective dwelling system.

Simultaneity, continuity and ephemerally characterize the flowing public spaces, therefore is an assemblage of the different dwelling clusters. This strategy is hoped to preserve the spirit of communality, or better known as 'guyub', which have existed in the current collective dwelling lifestyle of the society, even their dwelling units will be transformed almost vertically. 

Design Team:

Hafiz Amirrol and Chichi Asda (Architectural Design)

Chairul Maulidi (Urban Design)

Reagen Mulia (Landscape Design)

Modular Construction for Units' Infill

We are seeing the design of this housing proposal as an ongoing process, not as a finite product designed by the architects. To implement the idea of this ongoing process of development and flexibility of change, the non-structural building skins (exterior and interior) can be easily change by later intervention by the users themselves. Infill panels such as window frames, wall panels, ventilation panels, etc. were designed as modular units, thus allowing them to be altered based on future needs. However, these changes are being limited only within a controlled and allowable perimeter, pre-determined and planned by the architects. This is to control and prevent unwanted growth of the units that may results to structural problems as well as other planning problems such as layout configurations, uniformity and ventilation flow.

Design Team: Hafiz Amirrol and Chichi Asda

Indonesia - When Escapism and Reductionism Dominates

What happens when escapist and reductionist approaches are being used in seeing and resolving our complex and deep structured problems? This short analysis will try to understand the impact of these phenomena, both in the context of Indonesia's political-economical situation, as well as from the perspective of the research of the built environment.

Industri Dalam - Massing and Layout Studies

Evening Video Presentation: Bjarke Ingels

Industri Dalam - Facade Modules

Industri Dalam - Urban Design Concept

This schematic urban design concepts and guidelines addresses the relation between spatial design strategies and the proposal of developing the surrounding area of Industri Dalam as a Transit Oriented Development (TOD) area. This is due to its contextual relation with a nearby train station, market, and public transportation terminal. The issue of TOD and recurring themes of economic development play critical aspect of urbanism for the site as they are reflection for an ever-changing daily life practice of the community.


Urban design concepts and guidelines courtesy from Chairul Maulidi, Urban Design Program, ITB 2009.

Industri Dalam - Block Massing Morphology Studies

Anticipating Future Growth With a Dwelling System That Will Encourage Social Interaction

INFRASTRUCTURE = COMMUNITY NEEDS

Existing infrastructural nodes such as water sources, washing facilities and garbage disposal facilities have played important roles in the community’s daily activities. These important dwelling elements will be used as important nodes in the revitalization processes as they had already created important sense of place for the area in terms of practice of everyday life, as well as generator for the place. The marked nodes will be the early point of reference in determining the whole planning configurations.

ALUN-ALUN AS PLACEMAKING STRATEGY

Alun-alun is one of the most strategic public spaces to encourage social interaction. Currently, there are eight active spots on the site where social activities happen almost on a daily basis. These spots are empty spaces, yards, or extended spaces that belong to some of the most influential figures of the village (the community leader/ RT, the youth leader, a businessman, and the woman who make the best coffee and porridge in the village). These informal gathering spaces are potential nodes for the revitalization development, where these nodes will be retain and upgraded into lively communal spaces. Memory plays an important role in our decision to adapt this strategy, as we believe that the sense of place or genius loci of the site is all about the sense of belonging by the current dwellers. The memory of being together and building the village 20 years ago will always be something that cannot be erased even with a total make over of the area.

PHASING PLANS

The existing flats will be retained and upgraded in terms of its interior units sizes, circulation, openings and shadings, public utilities and appearance. This decision is due to the fact that the flats’ structural conditions are still good. The new houses will be developed in stages, allowing temporary resettlement for the residence during construction phase. The existing unused factory nearby was chosen for this relocation purpose, and will soon be turned into more dwelling units during phase two of the revitalization process. The current spot where small groceries shops are will be developed into a community shops, where residents will not only be able to get their daily needs, but also as an area where they socially blend while doing their routine activities.

NETWORKED DWELLING SYSTEM

The whole new master plan is designed to create permeability for the site. This is again a design strategy to encourage social interaction and networking in creating a dwelling system that care about each other and towards their surrounding environment. The interconnected housing units, infrastructural nodes, communal spaces and access points are also strategies to allow flexible mode of use in anticipating future density growth, economic status and also act as important mitigation plan during the event of disaster. These consolidated urban and housing components are hoped to provide a better living system for the users.

Pecha Kucha Night 7 Bandung

Hafiz Amirrol, together with Edy Subangkit, Firman Irmansyah and Michael Lengkey of Rampakasli will be presenting at the seventh edition of Pecha Kucha Night in Bandung.


Date: Friday, November 6, 2009
Time: 6.00 pm - 11.30 pm
Venue: Gedung Merdeka, Jalan Asia Afrika 65, Bandung, Indonesia
Website: http://pechakuchabdg.blogspot.com/
                 http://www.pecha-kucha.org/

Industri Dalam - Sketch Idea

Density growth is an issue that cannot be avoided in today’s context of Bandung. The question is - how to avoid unwanted urban sprawl and illegal development that will cause negative cumulative effect due to uncontrolled individual (dwellers) decisions? The proposal here is to design a flexible yet individually unique housing solution that would be able to accommodate densification within a controlled environment. The convolution strategy is hoped to provide an alternative dwelling solution that would resist generic housing development that is often associated with urban sprawl or the typical vertical type dwellings. 

Ecotransitional Urbanism: A Case Study on Urban Hyper Densification

Hyper densification on urban areas, conditions of sprawl, rapid urbanization and transmigration process pose significant challenges to urban design practices. The case studies here try to approach these conditions beyond formal, quick fix solution and emerged into a practice where 'landscape' and 'urbanism' are treated as a model of connective, scalar and temporal operations through which the urban condition is conceived and engaged as a complex and processual ecology.

Credit: AA Landscape Urbanism 

Case Studies: Ecotransitional Urbanism, Net-Worked Territories, AALU

Industri Dalam - Design Issues and Strategies

Kampung Improvement Program: A Case Study for Today's Housing Dilemma

(Un)built Cities of the Future: A Case Study for Today's Housing Dilemma

Housing Dilemma in Industri Dalam, Bandung

Complex and contradictory conditions, impermanency and transitions are opportunities for architecture and urbanism. The area of Industri Dalam, Bandung is the perfect site in examining this generative housing issues in urban areas. Its instability and dynamism offer opportunities for architects, urban designers and landscape architects to look beyond products and venture into a more sophisticated process that hopefully will reveal the hidden potentialities of housing settlements of the urban poor. Through the manifold identification of various paradigms in daily life, generating alternative design solutions would offer a sustainable and fair living condition for these marginalized society. This analysis on the condition of the site is hoped to provide a guiding framework in determining strategies and thinking process in the search of this alternative design scheme.

Click here for the full analysis on this area.

Evening Video Presentation at SAPPK ITB

Studio Pei-Zhu: A Study on Design Approaches

Studio Pei Zhu is an avant-garde architectural practice based in Beijing, China. The practice belief in practical solutions in reflecting their strong and innovative conceptual thinking in design. Their design approaches are always critical in resolving problems in modern China’s complex mixture of traditional and contemporary settings.

Design Philosophy

Studio Pei Zhu’s philosophy in responding to the above mentioned complex context are always a reflexive one. The current rapid modernization of urban China is being seen as a mix-marriage between old and new, thus forcing their design thinking and approach to adapt a kind of exploration in reconnecting the modern urban conditions to its roots, which are very rich, culturally and socially.

This philosophy has led the design practice to a unique method of reinterpreting the vernacular in a contemporary context. Most of their projects are being treated as tools in connecting process to products.

Design Objectives and Methods

In connecting design process to its final products, which is the way the practice function, Studio Pei Zhu has establish a strong framework in producing architectural pieces with unique aspiration, which they hope to be responsive and reflexive enough to survive and make a better impact in the rapid phase of modernization that China is experiencing.

The process of exploring various methods in approaching each design problems are always being conducted within a strong hold belief in an abstract insertion of old and new. This will reconnect modernity with its tradition, thus not making the final product to be an alien piece within the rich urban fabric and local context.

This process is hoped to reflect their philosophy in expressing their strong and innovative conceptual thinking in producing something that is critical and at the same time, practical to their end users. They are also active in engaging public dialogues regarding subject matters that are related to on-going shifts in cultural paradigm and identity issues.

By doing this, they hoped to engage not only public opinions, but also design techniques and materials, which are contemporary in rethinking cultural approaches in the process of designing architecture. This is being seen as a contributing factor for the practice to a more regional variance of contemporary architecture, which is appropriate to its local context.

Case Study: Caiguo Qiang Courtyard House

This small-scale renovation project that has earned Studio Pei Zhu a worldwide recognition from many architectural publications and awards adapted their design philosophy and approaches in a very responsive way. Their belief in reconnecting the old and new is being successfully translated by the process of inserting a new intervention in an old and almost dilapidated site condition. The new design was carefully positioned and configured to sits in harmony with its vernacular setting. The modern-looking, contemporary new house is being treated as a new product that will complement the old surrounding, without killing the original traditionalist neighborhood.

Critique

From the analysis and observation on the practice Studio Pei Zhu through their statements, design objectives and beliefs in approaching the built environment in a responsive way, there are some criticisms that I would like to express, especially with their design for the Xixi Wetland Art Museum.

From several resources (journals, public opinions, design critiques) that touched upon the design product of this new museum, it is being understood that somehow, Studio Pei Zhu has betrayed their own philosophical beliefs in approaching architectural design problems. The new intervention is being seen by the local community of that area as something that have no reference to anything local, thus is a desecration towards the context.

The smooth blob white surface of the iconoclastic museum does not reflect any of their design language of contextualism or vernacular approaches in a contemporary condition. The design is being questioned by the public for its alien appearance, which is difficult to be understood and accepted. Probably looking things from the past, coupled with some innovation would be more appreciated by the public at large?