Adina Mercelia_Portfolio_Design Studio 5 by adina mercelia

architecture design studio 5

PORTFOLIO

Adina Mercelia 1002266705

Revealing Boundaries

Introduction to the building Framework of “adaptive reuse”

Introduction to urban context

Second Chance

Transforming Barriers Building Strategies Small Metal Industry with Visitor Center Final Model

Urban Strategies

Urban Intervention

Revealing Boundaries

Lim Chong Construction, Jalan Loke Yew

Lim Chong Construction completed in 1956, initially intended as a multi-generational house, now become a mix use building typology where newcomer come in to stay in. The building was conceived by Lim Chong, a contractor for Masjid Negara for his family to stay in and serve as his contractor office. The facade colour was somewhat original since it was built, and no major renovation was ever done to this building.

Site Visit & Interview

On July 9, whole unit A students went to site visit to the buildings as well as to conduct some interviews to the shop owner and the residentials there who has been staying there for a long time. At this visit, we were also trying to undestand the body and mood of the buildings.

Transcript of the interview with the Aunty - Mechanic shop owner who has been working there for 20 years

Student : How you feel seeing this change from wood to concrete? Does this kind of building disturb you ?

Aunty : No, la, no matter what type of building, still have benefit to us, only bangla living styles is bad for me. However, every people also need car,even is house or shop car is needed for all people, if they have car then I have business so not much affect.

...

Student : you say your husband work here very young , so you meet him here , any special meaning?

Aunty : No, la, just part of our live, you like me then I like you ok that’s it. Need to earn living

Student :Just a working place memories

Aunty : Ya memories about our hard work life.

Interview translated by Wong Cheng Yong and Wong Zi Xuan

Transcript of the interview with Mr Soo - Taxi repair shop owner who has been working there for 27 years

Student : You rent many units, haven’t you plan demolish the wall?

Mr Soo : If you want demolish the wall, you need the permit of owner. You can’t simply demolish the wall as you want.

Student : Because there is a shop at the back where they made an opening on the wall.

Mr Soo : Ya, I know there is one behind.

Student : Haven’t you ask the owner if you can make an opening on wall.

Mr Soo : There is no point if you make any opening on wall, the shop beside is occupied by other. I am not using whole row of shop, other people also using it.

...

Student : Did this road exist before Mr. Soo came here?

Mr Soo : Yes, the road opposite and highway does not exist at that time.

Student : After built the highway, any different and impacts to u?

Mr Soo : Before built the highway, the opposite is a petrol station belong to owner’s grandfather. After built the highway, the highway blocks the road, customers difficult to come this area. They need to U-turn and some of them saw the shop, but they do not know how to come over here. This affects our business and no parking for us.

Interview translated by Tow Shi Kim

During my visit, my attention was looking at this once the aunty said that the building and the atmosphere there are antique and valuable. I feel the chair has kind of similar feelings to the building itself. The way the stool and the board was placed together, they look harmonious even though they look old, but still functional, like the building itself. Other than that, the stool was being used as the seating for their customer.

The idea of having skin and skeleton exploration after the first exploration

Model that interpret from placement of stool and board, where the stool became the skeleton of the building while the board became the skin of the building. This exploration suggests the idea of having intimate courtyard.

Another translation of the first model, where the ground floor area, the skin is being taken off, New material is added. The existing column of the building is being preserved.

Similar translation of the second model where nothings that close the courtyard, leave it open vertically. The wall of the ground floor is being taken off while new kind of wall is being added to it, that give new expressions.

Model 1

Model 2

Model 3

Will different wall material and placement will give different exspressions?

When the one side of wall is down, will it create a differences?

Introduction to Urban Context

Research done by Mr Yusoff Group

Transforming Boundaries

A Wall in the City

From vital infrastructure helping to distribute traffic, highway interchanges have changed to become distinctive monuments defining cities. Multiple road networks embrace and become distinct sculptures of the city, and these road intersections range from single bridge connections and roundabouts to numerous, layered, and multi-layered interchanges.They turn, loop, and wrap around land, plants, or existing structures in order to move passengers from one route to another. However, they do provide a moment of enclosure, where the city seems divided by walls of infrastructure. These walls form barriers that divide the city into limited regions.

However, those spaces like under the layer of highway or open spaces of turning radius, could be viewed as liminal and transitional that end up becoming a negative space. But like any wall, they too can be transformed. These car-dominated sculptures can evolve into more human-friendly spaces, where barriers no longer divide, but invite connection and movement, redefining the city’s rhythm.

Where the city’s wall provide openings that let connections to happen for both sides

Where the city’s wall still consider a connection between two areas

Where the city’s wall creates space underneath and being well used for other purposes

Where city’s wall creates a different route for people to come in

Where the city’s wall blocked shop frontages that disturb the business around

The city’s wall that separating two different levels of the areas

Where the city’s wall become a secondary wall of the corridor

Where the city’s wall create a deeper meaning for internal routes and connections

One of the first urban intervention : Making a drop off on first floor of exisiting shop house from existing elevated highway

The elevated street is adjusted to the first floor level height, then it thicken the elevated highway to reach that level.

This intervention is actually making the city’s wall even thicker and blocking more shophouse frontage, which my concept against this kind of ideation. So, this urban intervention stops there and no adjusment was made. Because my concern is the sadness of the shop’s frontage that can’t be used because of the elevated street that blocking it, make the shophouse to use back side as their main entrance.

Second Chance

Site studies for building strategies

Building Strategy 1

The highway interchanges inspired me to have multi-layered spaces where different activities take place on various levels. One of the key point here is the elevated walkway that is parallel to the highway next to it. The space later follows the level of the elevated walkway, gradually higher from one space to another space to have views that exceed the city wall. This building (brown) has entrances from the front side and back side as the meeting point of the people from both inside and outside of the city wall. The elevated walkway that ends up at LCC is followed by the backlanes connection that goes straight to see the view above of the city wall.

Building Strategy 2

Another alteration to the site from the back lane connection is cutting straight the site, creating a gap between the building blocks but at the same time it creating connection between inside and outside of the boundary. That alteration that makes an open courtyard in the existing shophouse. And to create linearity of the site, from LCC to the existing shophouse, the front part will be a pedestrian walkway that ends up the middle area being carved out. At this point, the elevated walkway (the ramp) is still there that connects to LCC.

Building Strategy 3

Next alteration from these strategies is breaking down the ramp into several parts that later will be following the flow of the main program. Other than that, (the white block on top of brown) one of the points that determine the form is the view to other parts that avoid the highway. Then, the straight line at the back side will be a connection between LCC and other parts of the site. At this point, LCC has been carved out at the ground floor to maintain the linearity between the whole site.

Sketch Section

FINAL PROJECT

The project proposes a small metal industry with a visitor center; drawing inspiration from Chan Sow Lin, who was a pioneer in local ironworks at the time. That he actually linked a bridge between local and external parties.

It’s also inspired by the breaking wall concept, that gave a second chance for demolitian to become something else, where the old metal from old car is given another chance to shine and usefull.

The facade of new architecture is somehow showing the process of breaking and unifies of metal into a systematic form.

As the metal melts, the sand solidifies, creating new metal shapes.

Gabion wall and exposed building structure

At the entrance, visitors are greeted by a gabion wall. The gabion wall embodies the concept of a breaking down structure, revealing the raw essence of wall material, same as metal casting, that started from raw material. The journey starts with a grand staircase that leads to an open plan where metal is given new life.

Open Layout Workshop

The metal workshop’s open layout eliminates boundaries between the production area and the visitors, inviting them to engage in the production process themselves. As the metal melts, the sand solidifies, creating new metal shapes. These visitor ramps function as new metal walls, like the highways that isolate different areas, while defining a clear circulation path around the open space.

The Glass Structure that Led to LCC

After that, the castings will be brought up to another stage where the finishing happens. Even though, new form is being made, the excess and some refinings need to be done. The glass structure here gives clear visibility to the other steps.