Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation Spatliasing Memories of Lost Architecture Dr Simone Chung (Thesis Advisor) Semester 1 AY 2021/2022 Choo Hui Zhi (A0171818Y)
Acknowledgements This thesis would not have been possible without the support of the following people: I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my thesis supervisor, Dr Simone Chung for taking me under her wing. Her dynamism, patience and wealth of knowledge have deeply inspired me and under her tutelage, I am very thankful to have been able to carve out a thesis that speaks to me. I would also like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to my studio leader, Ar. Khoo Peng Beng for his bold ideas and guidance in integrating my thesis topic with my studio project. Beyond being a mentor, his unfaltering enthusiasm and care for the well-being of his students were comforting, especially during this hectic semester. I am also grateful to my parents for their immeasurable love and acts of service throughout my architecture education and especially during crunch time, like buying meals, making nourishing herbal drinks and doing my share of the household chores. And finally, I am extremely appreciative of my friends and thesis studio mates for bouncing ideas with me, checking in on my well-being and for emotional support through all those long discord study sessions together.
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Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture Semester 1 AY 2021/2022 Choo Hui Zhi A0171818Y Dr Simone Chung (Thesis Advisor) Ar Khoo Peng Beng (Studio Leader) Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
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Foreword The Covid-19 pandemic has been a very pensive experience for me – it has given me the space and time to think about my past adventures in the post-covid world and snippets of my childhood that have left an indelible mark. This thesis was born out of my fascination with the memory palace, and inevitably, the workings of the human mind and the many cathartic memories that still haunts me. Along with my interest in Singapore’s architectural and cultural heritage, I was obsessed with trying to marry these seemingly different, yet strangely intertwined concepts together. And thankfully, with the guidance of my thesis advisor, Dr Simone Chung, everything fell into place. I managed to anchor my research to drawing as a methodology, which coincidentally happens to be my first love and what drew me to studying architecture (although having been through 4.5 years of architecture, I have come to realise that architecture encompasses so much more than that). I found solace in drawing during those dry Mathematic classes, and it evolved into a frivolous hobby that I enjoyed after school and when making handmade Christmas cards. Hence, this thesis is an amalgamation of my passion projects and of things that keep me up at night. To whoever reading this, I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did when curating this thesis.
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Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
Contents Acknowledgements Foreword Research Research Abstract (300 words)
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Research Approach Prelude Existing Memory Preservation Techniques in Singapore Conservation Principles Internet and Social Media Museums Traditional Orthographic Drawings Architecture with Memories and a Consciousness Multi-Store-Model (MSM) Architectural Ethnography (AE)
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Case study: Hougang Case study: Rochor Centre (RC)
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Critical Discussion Framework for Memory Preservation Future Application
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Appendix Appendix 1: Hougang Appendix 2: Rochor Centre (RC) Notes Bibliography
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Image/Resource Index
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Self-Disclosure of Research
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Research Abstract “Memento Mori” is a reminder of mortality - everything will eventually die. Similarly, Singapore’s built environment faces the inevitable destine for ruin, removal, and change because of our tabula rasa approach towards redevelopment, which discounts the nuanced real-lived experience of the people that once inhabited the place and its genius loci. Could we give the voice back to the people by anthropomorphizing architecture as a storytelling medium and an entity with consciousness – one that can store memories, remember, and forget?
(273 Words) Keywords: Preserving Memory; Architectural Ethnography; Memento Mori; Architectural Ghost; Multi-Store Model; Drawing as an Architecture
Since the 1970s, there has been a boom in scholarship on memory studies which are traditionally centred around humans. Even in the field of architecture, it has been limited to what has been outlined in the Art of Memory (Yates, 1966) – which conceptualizes the brain as a physical space that stores memories like how one store’s objects in the room. Hence, this thesis argues that architecture can have memories by examining it with the most influential memory model, the Multi-Store Model (MSM) (Atkinson and Shiffrin, 1968), which proposes that memory consists of three stores: a sensory register (SM), short-term memory (STM) and long-term memory (LTM) and information is transferred between these stores. Acknowledging that this model is an oversimplification of the memory-making process, it still lays the foundation for deeper inquiry of architecture’s memory-making process through the stories of its people.
Since buildings are destined for death, this thesis aims to spatialize memories of lost architecture using Architectural Ethnography (AE) and drawing as a process to link the past, present and future, to conceive an experiential archive. The archive should provoke the imaginative reconstruction of the lost architecture to appreciate its architectural ghost.
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Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
Research Approach Given death is the inevitable fate of every building1, this thesis adopts a theory-led approach and delves deeper into architectural philosophy, which questions how Architectural Ethnography (AE) can be employed to preserve memories of lost architecture. 2 Case studies, Hougang (Figure 1) and Rochor Centre (Figure 2), will be investigated in this report.
Figure 1: The Hougang planning area used to be home to many villages before the 1980s, such as the famous Kangkar Village, which was a popular fishing village. [Left] Kangkar Village in 1984, before it was acquired for the construction of Hougang New Town in 1986 (Source: National Library Board Singapore); [Right] Kangkar LRT station, which contains the only trace of the former village today (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
Figure 2: [Left] Rochor Centre in 2015 (Source: The Straits Times) [Right] Rochor Centre today (Source:The Straits Times)
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Prelude For the creation of a ‘nation’, Singapore manipulates the material landscapes2 via the Land Acquisition Act, which gives the government legal power to forcefully acquire land for public infrastructure and developmental needs.3 This has transformed the nation into a mega-project - of housing towns, Central Business Districts and tourism-oriented historical districts. Not limited to built but demolished projects, lost architecture also entails unbuilt buildings4 – with the former being the focus of this thesis.
Memories is likened to a palimpsest, which is “a parchment or other writing surface on which the original text has been effaced or partially erased, and then overwritten by another; a manuscript in which later writing has been superimposed on earlier (effaced) writing”.5 Similarly, a building has layers of memories – from a tabula rasa to the shared stories of its inhabitants and finally its dramatic demise.
However, existing methods of preserving memories are problematic as they commodify culture and are incompetent in capturing the chronicles of the architecture, which are embodied by its inhabitants. Could we anthropomorphize architecture – an entity that can store memories, remember, and forget – by giving the voice back to the people?
Some detractors question the purpose of memory preservation because the main function of memory lies in forgetting, which allows us to move forwards as species.6 However, preserving memories of the past is important because our past informs the present and future and grounds our societal identity.7
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Despite memory being a transdisciplinary concept, it has traditionally been centred around human memory. Memory studies in the field of architecture are currently limited to architectural mnemonics, as outlined in Yates’ quintessential scholarship, The Art of Memory.8 She explains that because memory is predominantly image-based, the Greeks invented this technique by imprinting images in places, known as a locus.
This thesis argues that architecture can have memories by examining it with the influential memory model, the Multi-Store Model (MSM).9 AE is proposed as a methodology to link past, present and future memories of the lost architecture. Ethnography refers to the “representation of a society and culture of a specific ethnic group based on fieldwork”- in this context we can substitute “specific ethnic group” with a broader consideration of “people” and “community” or as an undefined social “group”.10 The autonomy of the architect – through transcending scales, dimensions, between part and whole and between empirical and whole - is overlaid on ethnography as AE.11 An experiential archive can be conceived that would provoke the imaginative reconstruction of the lost architecture to appreciate its architectural ghost, which refers to man-made structures that no longer exist and can only be known through the traces they left behind.12
It is hoped that this research will spark conversations about the value of preserving memories of lost architecture and serve as a call to action for statutory boards and heritage-enthusiasts to start archiving memories.
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
Existing Memory Preservation Techniques in Singapore Conservation Principles Heritage is a national inheritance and their alteration has indelible consequences to our physical and cultural landscape.Yet, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) adopts a non-consultative approach to its policymaking, which discounts the autonomy and expertise of people on the ground.
According to URA, quality restoration must retain the intrinsic spirit and authentic ambience of the urban artefact by adhering to the 3Rs- Maximum Retention, sensitive Restoration, and careful Repair.13 Despite the stringent guidelines to preserve the authenticity of the streetscape, its loopholes enable users to circumvent regulations in a controlled manner, which reveals the pragmatic priorities of urban planners (Figure 3 and 4).
Figure 3. Some clan associations in the Chinatown historic district are classified as residential or commercial spaces by URA. Its ambiguous land-use regulations provide flexibility for them to be converted for economic functions, given their declining popularity.
This “museumification of heritage and history”14 encourages tokenism, which allows enough heritage to show outsiders, but are insufficient to feel at home. For example, Keong Saik Road has been rebranded to a gentrified district for new-fangled eateries, from its raunchy history as a former red-light district15 and birthplace of prominent clan associations.16
Figure 4. When compared to a historic photograph [right] taken in 1985, some shophouses on Teo Hong Road defy the URA regulation to reinstate the original Shanghai plaster finishes, instead, they are plastered and painted. (Source: National Archives Singapore) Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
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Internet and social media
Traditional orthographic drawings
The internet has fuelled sharing of memories to reach a wider audience, from small-scale blogs, like “Remember Singapore” to a larger scale, government initiatives like the Singapore Memory Project (SMP), yet none are spared from state-led policing. Authorities can order online platforms to remove or correct perceived false statements that are “against the public interest”17, which threatens the freedom of expression.18 Platforms like SMP, which is moderated by National Library Board, create an illusion of democratic participation without real distribution of power. 19
The geometrical basis of orthogonal projects allows the extrapolation of information they contain, making it a precise tool for design communication. However, they only reflect the “before” and “after”, discounting the thoughts and adjustments that lead up to the final design.20 Although architects use other types of drawings to bridge the gap between the plan and building21, they fail to capture the whole dimension of architecture that escapes the Euclidean space. This includes the visible or invisible traces of the passage of time or the changing atmosphere.
Museums Developed to contribute to the cultural capital, museums provide a tunnel vision into the multifaceted history of Singapore. While exhibitions are thorough in capturing “politically correct” social memories, inconvenient personal narratives are excluded. In “Picturing the Pandemic” by the National Museum of Singapore, pandemic fatigue, and mental health struggles, which could jeopardise Singapore’s covid-resilient image, were not documented.
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Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
Architecture with Memories and a Consciousness To bridge problems associated with current memory preservation methods, this thesis posits that the memory of buildings can be conceived as the collective memory of the communities that inhabit them. While there are downfalls in memories, such as the unacceptable homogenisation of vastly different objects22, there is value in understanding what we privilege in our memories as it reveals societal values. Multi-Store Model (MSM) For more democratic and holistic memory preservation of buildings, the MSM will be employed to mobilise the memories of its inhabitants.23 It proposes that memory contains 3 stores: sensory memory (SM), short-term memory (STM) and long-term memory (LTM); each store is defined by its encoded information, capacity, and duration.
Duration SM
¼ - ½ seconds before lost through decay STM 0 - 18 seconds before lost through decay LTM Unlimited
Activating the 5 senses,25 and emotional information can also help consolidate memories from the STM to LTM.26 Acknowledging that this model is an oversimplification of memory because it operates linearly and generalises the role of rehearsal without considering other factors, like motivation, it still establishes the groundwork for the memory-making process. Adapting this memory model for architecture (Figure 5), inhabitants can channel their sense-specific encoded information from their SM to STM, which is embodied by the building. Through rehearsal, for example, if many residents share the same experience, the encoded information will be transferred from the STM to LTM of the building. Experiencing an emotional or multi-sensory event can create memory links for better memory consolidation.
Capacity
Encoded Information Large capac- Any sense ity 7+/-2 items Mainly auditory
Unlimited
Mainly semantic
Based on environmental sensory stimulation, information is encoded in the SM. When an individual’s attention is focused on one of the sensory stores, data from the SM is transferred to the STM. Continual rehearsal, which refers to repeating the information without thinking about its meaning or connection to others24, makes the memory stronger before transferring it to the LTM.
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5
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Multi-Store Model: In Humans Data from the SM is 1
Environmental sensory stimulation
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2
Sensory Memory (SM) encodes environmental stimulus
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transferred to the Short Term Memory (STM) Consolidation of data from STM to the Long Term Memory (LTM) through rehearsal, activating the 5 senses or strong emotions
Humans
Figure 5:This illustrative diagram speculates how the memory system in humans can be embedded in the larger memory system of a 12
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
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Multi-Store Model: In Architecture Architecture
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What if architecture could embody the memories of its inhabitants?
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If many inhabitants share the same experiences, encoded information can be transfered from the STM to LTM of the architecture. An emotional or multi-sensory event can create stronger memory links.
architecture when the lives of its inhabitants unfold on its premise. Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
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Architectural Ethnography (AE) To consolidate architecture’s multitude of memories, AE is employed to recombine fragmented memories, and provoke imaginative reconstruction to resurrect its architectural ghost. Since drawing is involved in every stage of design communication, it can be employed to uncover realities that would otherwise be unseen27 and document memories across time and space.
Suto’s “W House” (Figure 6 and 7) used drawing to memorialise the history of a house on the verge of demolition. By employing precise pencil lines with soft chromatics of wet paint, it reveals the intangible aspects of the site, including the changing light, seasonal colours and its scents. 28
Figure 6. Overview of the W House (Source: Yukiko Sutu,W House)
Figure 7. Garden of W
Furthermore, as a research method29, drawing exploits the simplicity, tangibility, and immediacy of the medium and emphasises the meaning-making processes behind it.30 Thus, it allows one to think critically about the building and serve as a call to action for its users and the authorities.
“The Reconstruction of Nahr el-Bared” (Figure 8 to 11) used drawing for social organisation through collaborative retracing of Palestinians in Lebanon’s destroyed neighbourhood. An urban design intervention was developed by the authorities based on the resultant drawing, whose construction began in 2009.31
Figure 8. [Left] The map was digitally constructed from a multitude of Ismael Sheikh Hassan,The Reconstruction of Nahr el-Bared)
Figure 9. [Right] A zoom-in of the previous map shows attempts to confirm land - names and locations of each family are handwritten by different peop Sheikh Hassan,The Reconstruction of Nahr el-Bared) 14
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
W House byYukiko Suto; Colors are employed to heighten the perception of the seasonal blossoms. (Source: Yukiko Sutu, W House)
drawings. (Source:
m prior ownership of ple. (Source: Ismael
Figure 10. [Left] The map attempts to record the building footprints and apartment layout before the destruction, almost liken to a map of memory. (Source: Ismael Sheikh Hassan,The Reconstruction of Nahr el-Bared) Figure 11. [Right] A zoom-in of the previous map showcases the intricacies of the urban landscape which is influenced by topography. (Source: Ismael Sheikh Hassan,The Reconstruction of Nahr el-Bared) Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
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In some highly-acclaimed works, drawings hold their weight as standalone architecture and can overshadow the built project. For example, John Soane tasked Joseph Michael Gandy to memorialise and glorify the Bank of England (Figure 12). His visionary rendering of it in ruins immortalised it on the scale of an imperial monument.32 Despite the building being demolished, many remember it fondly because of Gandy’s ingenious drawing.33
Figure 12. Bank Of England in Ruins. (Source: Joseph Michael Gandy, Sir
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Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
r John Soane’s Museum Collection Online)
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Case study: Hougang Collage of Hougang’s Urban Fabric The conception of this collage began after reviewing the site photographs. Despite their conflicting qualities, when the patchwork of images is read together, it opens a new field of relations by contrasting textures, light and colours. This collage is a documentation of the urban fabric and the author’s corresponding emotions across space and time.
Collaging, which involves the assemblage of different materials to create a new whole34, is a flexible tool for mapping urban textures. Photos reflect the on-theground realities, yet they can encapsulate the subjective site reading - through cropping, altering its saturation and sharpness.
Accidental photographs, which are often trashed, were used because they provide unseen perspectives that can create interesting abstract compositions. Blurry textures from accidental photographs were used to signify how memory of certain areas was haphazard due to Hougang’s repetitive landscape. This draws on how memory tends to homogenise objects to optimise the memory system – remove the accumulation of former operations and free its processing capacity.35
Figure 13. Its lack of distinct character and repetitive urban fabric – the in and the rare traces of biodiversity.These nuggets of interest sparked joy amid
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Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
ndistinguishable HDB blocks and dull asphalt concrete roads is broken by the peaceful water body at Punggol Waterway, unorthodox pop-up events dst the numbing sameness of the city.
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An Escape from the Present The present state of Hougang is depicted in the top-half of the drawing, contrasting with the inverted historical landscape. The drawing portrays the non-static nature of memory and how they respond to past and present conditions through the layering of memories.
The inverted landscape disorientates the viewers and prompts them to study it in detail. Confusion is further exacerbated by the intentional usage of chiaroscuro. Hence, this enables viewers to think more critically about the seen and unseen spatial vestige of time.
Employing different materiality, such as collaging and sketching, produces different strokes, textures and tone that builds up the atmosphere of the drawing and uncover fresh perspectives about the subject, like in Suto’s “W House” (Figure 6 and 7).
Figure 14.This drawing depicts the idea that memories are fluid, metamorp brace the old way of life.
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phosising and weaving with each other to form the urban fabric.There lies an idea of breaking free from today’s grid-like landscape to em-
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Cartographic Historical Traces of Hougang While this illustrated comparison of various historical maps highlights Singapore’s rapid development, it reveals the city has memories because it displays a pattern of behaviour. Some traces persist, others evolve and efface with time, liken to memory-making. Cartography provides visual contrast and hierarchical organisation of information so that viewers can easily identify important elements and trace patterns of change in the landscape.
Given the limited resources available online and the illegibility of older historical maps, synthesising the information into cartography is challenging and requires cross-referencing of other materials.
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1911
1943
1963
1998
2021
2005
SOURCE: Historical maps of Singapore, digitised by Department of GEOGRAPHY, National University of Singapore
TIME GROUND ROAD FOREST SWAMP WATER BUILDING
Figure 15. It shows the change in natural landscape and creation of artificial ones over the years.
DISTANCE
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Palimpsest of Hougang Hougang’s memory can be conceived as a mechanism that layers information with time, like a palimpsest. Some layers cannot be retrieved because they are forgotten and no triggers are present to activate them (which draws on the abovementioned ideas of human memory).36
A graphical method has been employed to chart the evolution of memories in Hougang against time – with the y-axis representing time and x-axis space. Connecting science with art can appeal to the viewer’s emotions, hence making it a powerful medium for storytelling. Each layer contains a prominent urban fabric in that time and space. The palimpsest grows vertically upwards and the top of the canvas is left empty, which suggests that Hougang’s future remains unknown and awaits new layers of memories to envelope it with time.
It was a struggle to maintain the integrity of the data while curating the aesthetics of the drawing. Although historians may argue that precision of knowledge is pertinent, AE demands a skilful balance of both historical accuracy and aesthetic design.
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Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
Figure 16. Hougang town was once a primary forest that evolved into gambier, pepper and coconut plantations, vegetable farms and fruit orchards. Amongst these plantations were the emergence of kampongs, such as KangkarVillage. In 1979, Hougang was slated to be redeveloped into a new housing town, which has created its concrete jungle of today. Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
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Figure 17.What was once a bustling Teochew fishing village and market, Kangkar was a multicultural and multireligious village that was livened w
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Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
with festivals and teeming with biodiversity.Today, it is part of the Hougang planning area, predominated by housing flats.
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Time Capsule of Kangkar Village This drawing (Figure 17) creates multiple narrative compositions to tell a series of stories on a single canvas. Different viewpoints were employed to memorialise the different facets of history in Kangkar (Figure 19 to 28). Figure 19 to 28 are close-up extracts of Figure 17.
An irregular visual rhythm is created in the drawing which increases its rhythmic contrast and visual dynamics.37 Its rhythmic sequence of attention follows the chronological order of storytelling – from the past to the present and into the unknown future. The viewers’ eyes dart quickly around the frame from the accented area of the fishing village to the unaccented area of the kampong living area, dunes and HDBs in the foreground. Led by the long horizontal bridge, the viewer is forced to journey on the bridge, which marks a temporal boundary, from the foreground of the image and closer to the viewer (Figure 27 and 28). The landscape of the present is taken at eye-level, however, the past is viewed looking down which suggests that it can be evaluated retrospectively.
A pencil effect is employed to create a sense of nostalgic wonder. The omission of colour serves to not draw viewers’ attention away from the details. Details reveal the profound architectural and environmental changes in Kangkar (Figure 19 and 25 to 26). Like in Suto’s “W House” (Figure 6 and 7), the attention to detail creates a pause as viewers immerse in the atmosphere in Hougang. The juxtaposition of textures against bleached out spaces emphasizes its importance in Kangkar’s narrative (Figure 20). Symbols of bizarre history like roaming tigers (Figure 24) enhance the factual reality of today’s landscape (Figure 18) through a choreographed fantasy of the past.
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Figure 18. Original photograph of Kangkar vicinity taken today, which ha different histories.
Figure 20. Kangkar Fish Market was the most important fish market in the pore till 1980s. Fishes sold in the market were from Punggol, Changi or ke of Johore. Merchants would set up offices in attap huts clustered around th
Figure 22. Residents used to love fishing at the nearby Tampines Fish Farm Many enterprising villagers also took advantage of the depressions of the q used to catch guppies, mangrove crabs and clams from the nearby streams, w
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
as been manipulated to reflect the
Figure 19. Kangkar was once a predominantly Teochew fishing village with a fishing village situated at the end of Upper Serangoon. Despite its demise in 1984, its strong kampong spirit lives on. Many former residents – some who were fish and ice dealers – used to go back to their old houses every morning.There was an abandoned wooden house in the village that was built in 1930, which served as an informal clubhouse that residents went back for meals. Unfortunately, none of these is around anymore.
e North-Eastern side of Singaelongs in the South-Eastern Coast he market.
Figure 21. Kangkar was a bustling fishing port, home base for about 90 offshore fishing boats and 16 fish merchants, with 40 tonnes of fish changing hands in a few hours each morning. Between 4-7PM daily, motorised boats started coming into Kangkar with their catch from the kelongs. Boats were tied to the jetty and workers would offload their catch to a giant shed where they would arrange the fish in neat piles on the floor and cover them in ice for potential buyers.
m and along the Serangoon River. quarries to rear fish. Children where Punggol Park is at today.
Figure 23.While there was a strong religious presence from the nearby Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Kangkar was a multi-cultural and multi-religious village. Residents lived harmoniously despite their differences and celebrated various festivals, like Lunar Seventh Month, Christmas and Mawlid Nabi (Prophet Mohammed’s birthday). Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
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However, when creating this drawing, there was unintentional homogenization of histories for the ease of pictorial representation. For example, the “loose form of auctions”38 or the privileging of the lingua franca, Teochew, which discriminates against outsiders, were not elaborated in the drawing (Figure 20 to 21).
While the drawing gives an overview of the narrative of Hougang, it is not useful in providing concrete information about its history and the lived experiences of its people. Rather, it serves as a complementary visual aid to written research (Appendix 1: History of Hougang), which could be circumvented by integrating supplementary text in the drawing. However, some argue that AE is not supposed to be a recreation of reality, like orthographic drawings. More importantly, it should present the author’s subjective interpretation of the site – a romanticised depiction of kampong life and one of mystical atmosphere, a nostalgia for paradise. The autonomy of the author and the interpretative freedom that drawing borrows is an expressive indication of the interest and needs of the author doing the remembering in the present, just like in Gandy’s “Bank of England in Ruins” (Figure 12).
Figure 24. Crocodiles, tiger-spottings, piracy and gangsterism plagued plan fishermen of Kangkar.
Figure 26.Today, Kangkar has transformed into a housing town as part of area, ridden with traces of its former landscape as a fishing village.The dra gestures to the vastness of the unexplored history.
Figure 28.The bridge represents a temporal boundary of the past and prese as a fishing village to the housing new town of today. She also seemed to h Kangkar as it continues evolving. 30
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
ntation workers, residents and
Figure 25.The natural landscape of Kangkar has also undergone a lot of changes – from a primary forest to reforestation of coconut plantations. Sand dunes which were a common sight in the neighbouring Tampines precinct formed the backdrop of this composition as a reminder of our rich biodiversity and natural environment before rapid modernisation.
the Hougang urban planning awing’s long horizontal axis
Figure 27. Instead of the fishing activities of the yesteryears, the nearby Serangoon River is linked to Punggol Waterway which hosts a series of water recreational activities today like kayaking and water playgrounds.
ent.Walking along the bridge, the old lady seemed to have experienced Kangkar’s development since she was a child – from its humble beginnings have accompanied us through the whole storytelling journey as she walks closer to the edge of the drawing, it signals an ambiguous future for
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Figure 29. Built in 1977, Rochor Centre was a mixed-use development at 1 Rochor Road. It was a podium-and-tower style, wh work, with each residential block spotting a distinct primary colour.The demolition of Rochor Centre in 2019 was to make way are also plans to build a modern office and residential tower. 32
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
hich housed 567 households and 187 shops.This group of buildings can be spotted miles away due to its striking façade painty for the North-South Expressway, which could alleviate the heavy traffic load in the North-Eastern sectors of Singapore.There
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Case study: Rochor Centre (RC) Last Days in Rochor Centre This drawing (Figure 29) depicts the days leading up to the demise of RC – the residents’ memories, hopes and dreams are playfully depicted by their conversations and activities. Figure 30 to 37 are close-up extracts of Figure 29. Based on the critic of “Time Capsule of Kangkar Village” (Figure 17), this drawing incorporates text, through speech bubbles, to enhance its narrative.
Like in Suto’s “W House” (Figure 6 and 7), colours are strategically employed to showcase the intangible qualities of RC. With residential blocks in their distinct primary colours, the vibrant colours also reflect its lively and diverse urban community.
An acute three-point perspective of RC mimics the perspective from a surveillance camera to show the social control of Singapore’s landscape via the Land Acquisition Act. This idea of the spatially distributed agency of the built environment is evident as activities against the state narrative are done in hidden view, like criticising governmental policies, as compared to more patriotic activities, like hanging the Singapore flags (Figure 30).
Figure 30. Rochor Centre is also conceived as a vertical kampong with a strong kampong spirit, amongst its neighbours.
To draw viewers’ attention to the vibrant community plaza (Figure 32 and 33), a three-point perspective is employed as attention is usually drawn to vanishing points39. Additionally, tonal separation is also used – with darker objects for the foreground and brighter objects to appear closer – which help accentuate RC’s bustling nature.40
However, due to the drawing’s large-scale, pictorial representation of smaller-scale details, like the activities in Rochore Kongsi Home for the aged, is tedious to rep34
Figure 31. Rochor Centre as a landscape of care for the wider community. Rochore Kongsi Home for the aged was home for the destitute elderly.“Kongsi” is a Hokkien phrase that signifies “to share” and illuminates the nature of the home as a place of mutual support. Not only was care shown by their attendants, but also from the wider community of residents and shop owners in the neighbourhood.
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
Figure 32. Rochor Centre is a community node for formal and informal gatherings of people from all walks of life.The doorstep of the electronics shop is a spontaneous meeting space to engage in discussions about local and international topics.The function of this complex is also supported by amenities, such as the bank and supermarket which form a loop around the plaza area, hence injecting vitality to it.
Figure 33. A bittersweet memory for many residents was when an electric shop caught fire in 2014 but also showcased the camaraderie of the community as many stepped forward to help put out the fire and call the authorities for assistance.
Figure 34. Rochor Centre is plastered with the inevitable fate of relocation. According to many residents, they first received the news of the en-bloc one day when they found “Notice of Possession” pasted outside their doors. It came as a shock for them because there was no consultation between the people and the authorities, and they were not given any prior heads-up.
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resent. Such information is comically imposed through text and misplaced graphics (Figure 31). Due to limited information online and lengthy interview clips, some conversations featured in the drawing are paraphrased or imagined based on the research information (Appendix 2: History of Rochor Centre). which could have compromised the authenticity of RC’s landscape.
er generation, RC is their primal landscape, which has given them an “intangible sense of attachment”.45 While they lament the loss of their childhood, they understand redevelopment is inevitable for future progress.
The optimistic mood of the drawing is dampened by the juxtaposition of the Notice of Possession (Figure 34) and excavator (Figure 35), which are symbolic of modern development that threatens to destroy the quaint life in RC. The loss of a home for residents and shopkeepers can be understood through the five stages of grief, which outlines the pattern in the experience of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance.41 Due to the strong emotions it posits, it can be incorporated as a memory preservation technique in AE (Figure 36 to 39). Strong emotions help with memory retention.42
Incidents, like the fire at the electronic shop in 2014 (Figure 33) or stories of neighbourly encounters along the corridor (Figure 30) were fondly remembered by many residents.43 Hence, these STM become cemented in the LTM of RC’s memory and were elaborated in the drawing.
Generational difference in attitudes about urban redevelopment (Figure 39) was also highlighted in the drawing. The older generation have experienced previous land acquisitions when they moved from overcrowded squatters to public housing, which has contributed to Singapore’s economic progress. Because of their geo-histories, they can better accept the acquisitions44, although they feel displeased about the relocation. However, for the young-
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Figure 35. Rochor Centre is seen as a “blockage” to the development of Singapore, which signals the privileging of the new in replacement of the old and ill-functioning.
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
Figure 36. Five stages of grief: denial and anger. Denial is unexpectedly short-lived because just like many other Singaporeans, they have resigned to the unrivalled control the government has on Singapore’s material landscape and it is near impossible for the shrewd government to overturn their decisions.The next stage of grief is anger, through the flurry of online commentary and outcries bemoaning the government’s decision.
Figure 38. Five stages of grief: Depression. One would translate this anger into a series of photo essays and pop-up events to remember the landmark, which invites a wave of nostalgia. Hipsters in their attempt to document the place flock to Rochor Centre for their last photoshoots.
Figure 37. Five stages of grief: Bargaining, which begins when one creates petitions and lobbies for support and signatures in hopes that the government will overturn their decision.
Figure 39. Five stages of grief: Acceptance occurs when residents resign to their inevitable fate for en-bloc – they realise that their efforts are futile, and it is only a matter of time before the government will demand the return of the land.The generational difference in their response to the en-bloc is also evident due to the differences in their geo-histories.
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Figure 40:This series of diagrams outline the general framework for memory preservation, which could be further applied to different environmenta architecture’s memory system for critical analysis through architectural ethnography and drawing as a process.The application of this piece of resea
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Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
al contexts. By conceiving that architecture has memories like humans, information gathered from field studies can be compartmentalised into the arch can be valuable in recognising the architectural value of the chosen place and contributing to the wider societal discourse surrounding it.
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Critical Discussion Framework for Memory Preservation Hence, this thesis posits a memory preservation framework based on the abovementioned cases studies. 1. Gathering cold data and formulating warm data Through synthesizing information from traditional orthographical drawings, coupled with fieldwork, and speaking to stakeholders, one can build up a database of cold and warm data. Fieldwork is pertinent because of its ability to tease out the tangible and more importantly, the intangible qualities of the site that can only be experienced. 2. Employing the MSM By positing that architecture has a memory system, information gathered can be categorised in the MSM with a systematic reference to time. This process of information sorting conceives a network of relations between different aspects of the site, which is material for critical reflection. Understanding why certain memories of the architecture are translated into the LTM, like the involvement of strong emotions, engagement of the 5-senses or because it was a prominent memory that many stakeholders experienced, can be noted for steps 3 and 4.
4. Architectural Ethnography (AE) as a provocative medium Creating the AE should employ the findings of the MSM. Whether through transcending scales, manipulating perspectives, or charting movement in space and time, the drawing should uncover unseen realities, such as changing seasonal colours and scents over time. Additionally, it should be injected with the autonomy of the author – by synthesising the author’s subjective reading of the site, the resultant drawing should be interpretative and evocative and layered with vibrancy through human activities for vivid storytelling. Hence, architecture can be embodied as an extension of human life instead of being a standalone – it lives, breathes and like us, it has a life and memories of its own. Due to the projective nature of drawings, supplementary texts, like conversation bubbles, can be included. They give the drawing more context, allowing it to be informative, while provocative.
3. Drawing as a methodology Drawing should not be seen as an end-product, rather a process of meaning-making. The act of drawing is a re-membering of fragments of memories from various sources to form a coherent narrative about the architecture.
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Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
Future Application The abovementioned framework, which draws on concepts like MSM and AE, can be applied on a chosen site in Singapore, to conceive an experiential archive for its memories. Tapping on the dialogic function of drawing to heuristically understand a place, AE can add a layer of new meaning to the architecture’s existing narrative and inspire its reimagination. To enhance its visual storytelling capacity and capture the attention of viewers, techniques like creating visual rhythm through space composition and manufacturing mood by manipulating colours and tones, can be employed in the drawing.
However, its storytelling ability is not limited to the past or the present – it could speculate the future state of the architecture. In recent years, there has been a shift to a more experimental approach to urban planning. In the ground-breaking ‘Runway for Your Imagination’ ideas competition, it enlists members of the public to reimagine the future of Paya Lebar Air Base and its surrounding industrial estate, which is “one that is filled with boundless opportunities”.46 Hence, there is a demand for more speculative design projects that push boundaries of conventional urban planning, to invigorate Singapore’s future cityscape.
Moreover, the process of creating AE likens to mind-map making – both involve synthesising written information into visuals. Research has shown that the drawing process helps to strengthen one’s memory by engaging the visual, kinaesthetic, and semantic memory,47 which begets the question: who benefits most from the drawing process? Could the drawing process involve more stakeholders - beyond just the author - to further memory preservation’s impact on a larger scale?
Hence, drawing can be employed as a tool to engage the layperson in a participatory capacity for research purposes, which was successfully executed in “The Reconstruction of Nahr el-Bared” (Figure 8 to 11). This method can be employed in stages 1-3 of the abovementioned framework (Figure 40) to collate information from stakeholders and contribute to the architecture’s larger memory system. Learning from Sol Lewitt, he conceptualises his artwork into a simple set of instructions and hands them to his assistants for execution.48 His instructional language is both specific and open-ended, which creates varying works based on the interpretation of his draftsperson. Similarly, experimentation of instructional language can be used to produce a spectrum of interesting material. However, unlike Lewitt, this drawing exercise should be engineered for the artist to have overall mastery over the drawing – only he can synthesise all the information collected to execute the final step of the framework (Figure 40).
The efficacy of a piece of drawing lies in its execution and performance – not only as a medium to concisely convey its key themes, but also to allow viewers to immerse in the alternative reality depicted in the drawing and provoke its imaginative reconstruction. Hence, this thesis stands as an experimental proposal for memory preservation of our amnestic city by utilising the MSM and AE, to create an avenue for the audience to wonder, ruminate and envisage the future of Singapore.
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Appendix 1: History of Hougang Hougang is an area in the North-Eastern part of Singapore.49 “Hougang” is the Mandarin pronunciation of “Au Kang”, which means “at the back of the river” in both Teochew and Hokkien. The river in question refers to Sungei Serangoon (Serangoon River) at the end of Upper Serangoon Road.
In the 19th century, Hougang was populated with gambier and pepper plantations, which were reforested after primary forests were indiscriminately cleared. By the end of the century, Singapore lost 90% of its forest cover.50 In the late 19th century, these plantations were replaced with coconut plantations, vegetable farms and fruit orchards. To accommodate the growing population, in the first half of the 20th century, plantations at the 5th milestone were transformed into neighbourhoods for Eurasians, Hokkiens, Teochew, Hainanese and Malay communities.51 There were 2 prominent villages in the Hougang area: Tua Jia Kar and Kangkar Village. Tua Jia Kar was most prominent for its well water but was also an important spot for community activities for villagers in Upper Serangoon. Kangkar, on the other hand, housed the most important fish market in North-Eastern Singapore in the 1980s.52
Hougang was always bustling with activities. It offered unique tourist attractions, such as the Tan Moh Hong Reptile Skin and Crocodile Farm in the 5th milestone and between 1930 to 1980, the popular Tai Thean Kew Circus would perform where the Church of Immaculate Heart is now. Other recreational activities that the people of Hougang enjoy also included, swimming in Sungei Serangoon, climbing trees to pluck fruits like rambutan, watching films at Empire Theatre or even listening to the storyteller along the road:
“At the 6th milestone junction of Tampines and Upper Serangoon Road, there used to be a storyteller who set up a station in the traffic island every night. He would time his sessions with lit joss sticks, and when the joss sticks burned out, the audience would have to pay another ten cents for him to continue.” 53
“They used rattan chairs at Empire Theatre, opposite the current Serangoon Shopping Centre. A lot of bugs! They used to run the projector and you could hear it in the theatre.The shows screened were Ben Hur, Samson, Sinbad the Sailor and Indian shows.That was the only recreation then before television.” 54
In the later years, recreation in Hougang changed when In the mid-1800s, the Paris Foreign Missions Society, Les Missions Étrangères de Paris (MEP), saw it found the need to send a missionary priest to serve the predominantly Teochew Catholic population at the 7th milestone. It is through these early kampong days that Hougang has evolved into a place with many places of faith today, such as Tou Mu Kung Temple, St Paul’s Church, Japanese Cemetry and Masjid Haji Yusoff. Each of these institutions is an indicator of the different communities that lived in the area.
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it became the first housing estate to have a fast-food restaurant in 1964 and the first estate with a bowling centre in 1986.55 In August 1952, the construction of Paya Lebar Airport commenced, which sat at the edge of the Hougang town.
In 1979, the Housing Development Board (HDB) announced plans to create a housing new town in the area to host 120,000 people.56 To create a greater sense of identity for these new towns, distinctive features were
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incorporated into the housing design. For example, housing at Hougang Street 21 has colonial architecture elements, reminiscent of Singapore’s pre-war bungalows. As of 2015, Hougang is the largest HDB new town based on land area, with 51,646 flats and 179,800 residents.57
Kangkar Fishing Village Kangkar Fishing Village58 was a fishing port with a fishing village located at the end of Upper Serangoon. Rumour has it that anyone born and bred in Kangkar could do two things - tell the freshness of fish just by one look and speak Teochew.59 Its famed fish market was set up by the Catholic missions in the early 20th century. In Teochew, “Kang” refers to a river, while “kar” means leg, hence, Kangkar means to be at the “foot of the river”. Fish merchants set up their office in attap huts – a roof held up by wooden posts, set on the pier, surrounding the market.
Residents of Kangkar earned their living by fishing near kelongs in North-Eastern Singapore, like Punggol and Changi and in South-Eastern Johore. In 1983, it was reported that Kangkar was home base to 90 offshore fishing boats and 16 fish merchants, with 40 tonnes of fish being exchanged in a few hours every morning – with 13,607 tonnes of fish handled in 1982.60
The Kangkar Fish Market operated in an informal setting, which privileges locals that spoke the lingua franca, Teochew and understood insider bargaining methods. As recounted by The Straits Times61:
“The Kangkar wholesale fish market operates as a very loose form of auction. Sellers call out prices of items that are not moving, then nimbly run them up or down from moment to
moment, following the trend of demand. If two buyers want a particular tray of goods, they have to outbid each other. Some hang around for hours, waiting for the price of slower-moving items to hit rock bottom before buying.The merchants work out transactions on a calculator or abacus and record sales (which peter off at around 8 a.m.) in hardbound exercise books.They collect the cash—or even give credit to trusted hawkers—and distribute it later to the various fishermen, after deducting six to eight per cent commission. Outsiders get snubbed, for they tend to misread the delicate bargaining signals or do not understand the lingua franca, which is predominantly Teochew.”
The operation of the fish market was a pivotal aspect of the life of Kangkar residents – from bringing in their catch to shopping the market for the freshest produce. This was based on the accounts by Mr Lee Boon Kee who moved to Kangkar when he was 4 years old and spent his childhood there:
“From between 4 pm and 7 pm motorized boats would start coming into Kangkar, bringing their catch from the kelongs in the North-Eastern coast of Singapore. Some kelongs were also from the seas off the South-Eastern coast of Johore.The boats would be tied up at the jetty and started offloading their catch.Workers, many of them my neighbours, would haul the huge crates to the giant shed, a short distance from the jetty. Here, other workers would sort out the fish, cover them with ice and arrange them in neat piles on the floor ready for the buyers.
Early the next morning the shed would be a busy hive of activities. Buyers in all kinds of contraptions, some on motorcycles with an attached side-car, would buy the catch for resale to consumers. If I went to the shed early, I would
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be able to see my next-door neighbour who was a widow with two children buying the cheapest types of fish and other seafood, putting them in her two carry baskets. She would carry them and walk to several kampungs to sell the fish.This was how she made a living and supported two children. Her children, however, did not attend school.” 62
Furthermore, as a multi-cultural and multi-religious village, the village celebrates a range of festivals despite their differences, like the Lunar Seventh Month. Sharing was also a big part of the festivities in Hougang with an exchange of delicacies being the highlight:
Beyond a fishing village, Kangkar was also bustling with nostalgic community activities, like fishing. Fishing was a popular recreational activity amongst the young. A news article dated in the 1980s also featured fishing at Tampines Fish Farm as one of the recommended outdoor activities for students to explore during their vacation. It was also a profitable business amongst villagers:
“In the lunar seventh month, there would be the Gor Tai (getai) held at an empty space on the other side of the road near to the Kangkar harbour. I remember my brothers and I would go and watch these Gor Tais but I never really took a liking to them, but only to the street food such as yang-or jui (bird’s nest drink) or putu piring from the itinerant hawkers. As we were really poor, we could only afford very few of these luxuries, and could only afford them once or twice throughout the seventh month using our limited pocket money.” 65
“I recall there was a small stream which ran from the side of one of the lanes which Lorong Santun split into as one walked deeper in from the Upper Serangoon end before Lorong Santun joined Punggol Road on the other side (where Punggol Park is now). I used to catch guppies from the stream or followed that lane deeper into the payoh (swamp).There, besides guppies, we could catch bua kee (swamp or mangrove crabs) or long gao her (drain guppies) and dig for clams.To catch bua kee, we would use a stick with the piece of string from a drinks plastic bag tied with a moving knot to hook a claw of the bua kee.We would
“During any festival it was customary to have the exchange of delicacies amongst the neighbours in the kampong. Our dining table was always graced with the various cakes and cookies of the various races during these festive times. In reciprocation at Christmas time our neighbours had a share of the various cakes that Mum baked for the season … Living in a kampong allowed everyone to witness and partake in festivities of the various races.” 66
bring home the larger crabs for my mum to clean and marinate with soya sauce and chilli.The marinated bua kee really went well with porridge...Today, the area has changed tremendously and it’s no longer as rustic as before. I miss the fishing boats and harbour at Kangkar.” 63
“Many enterprising villagers took advantage of the depressions left by the sand quarries to rear fish then. In the 1970s, the government started work to transform old Tampines into a public housing estate.” 64
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The residents of Kangkar also had their fair share of challenges, which was shared by many residents living in neighbouring villages. For villages in Tampines, it was tiger sightings67, but in Kangkar, crocodiles and piracy plagued the plantation workers, fishermen and their workers68. Their experiences were detailed in the following:
“... I was coming from Johore in a sampan kota (boat
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
with an engine), in company with two Chinese ... as we neared the mouth of the Serangoon River, I saw a sampan, waiting apparently for some boat; we approached the sampan and as we did so the men in it, rose up; they were eight in number, they were all Malay, they were armed with spears, which they threw at us. I was wounded across the right breast and in the arm, cutting through part of it and entering my side. I saw both of my companions wounded with the spears, we all jumped overboard. I have not seen either of my companions since and cannot tell if they are alive or not.” 69
“A large alligator (sic) has been seen constantly in the Sirangoon river making his appearance in different parts looking for prey and causing great terror amongst the natives and fishermen in that quarter. About 5 days ago he seized a Chinaman, who fortunately escaped, his clutches.The Malays have been on the watch for him some time, and about 3 o’clock yesterday morning put an end to his career. He was brought to the Court house in a bullock cart. He appears to belong to the old school, and measures about 11 feet long and 31/2 feet in circumference.The Malay who caught the alligator received $5 for his trouble.” 70
their old neighbours for meals:
“Even when it was gone, Kangkar village still retained a strong pull for its former residents and many had fond memories of the area. In 1986, Kangkar was a shell of what it was formerly, but Mr Loh Kiam Chung shared with The Straits Times that he and other former neighbours—fish and ice dealers among them— still went back every morning to their old house in Kangkar village. A wooden home built in the 1930s, home to three families who stayed there till 1984, and falling apart at the time, served as an informal “clubhouse” to Mr Loh and his family and friends, who still went back for breakfast and cooked their meals just as they used to before.” 71
Unfortunately, the days of the Kangkar Fish Market was short-lived. Its land was acquired for the construction of Hougang New Town and extension of Upper Serangoon Road.
Fish merchants were relocated to a new complex in Punggol in 1984 and their villagers were resettled in the vicinity in 1986. Even after the residents have relocated, the Kangkar village kampong spirit still lived on because residents shared a strong camaraderie and fond memories there. According to The Straits Times, old residents would visit the village even after their relocation to meet
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Appendix 2: History of Rochor Centre Before the Rochor Centre, as we know it today, it once stood as a spice plantation in the 19th century before it evolved into a transport hub of jinrikisha at the end of the 19th century, which attracted thousands of rickshaw pullers at Rochor Canal Road.72
As early as 1836, the first double-storey shophouse emerged in Rochor, which were known as Tiwary Street, Muar Road and Angullia Road73 then. They supported the coolies and trishaw rider communities from Hokchia who settled there. Like many others in the trade, they found respite in opium and gambling, which the area gained its notoriety for.74
Subsequently other notable landmarks like Rochor Wet Market at Sungei Road in 1872, The Church of Our Lady of Lourdes in 1888, the famous Thieves’ Market in the 1930s, and the Singapore Ice Works, Singapore’s first ice-making plant, in the 1950s.75 In the 1980s, there was a rapid rise in retail and office complexes in the vicinity, such as Sim Lim Tower in 1980, Fu Lu Shou Complex in 1983, Sim Lim Square in 1987 and OG Albert Complex in 2000.76
In the 1920s, Selegie and Rochor road became the performance venue for traditional dances and cultural shows for the growing Indian immigrant community – in fact, Rochor means “old Hindu theatre”.77
Built in 1977, Rochor Centre was a mixed-use development at 1 Rochor Road. And like many of the public housing estates built during this period, it was a podium-and-tower style, which housed 567 households and 187 shops.78 This group of buildings can be spotted miles
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away due to its striking façade paintwork, with each residential block spotting a distinct primary colour. Branded as a community-centric district, it features shops selling daily-need amenities - it hosted 3 banks, POSB, DBS (1977-2016) and Tat Lee, an Oriental Emporium branch (1977 – unknown), supermarket and a post office (19772016). It also had elevated void decks, recreational areas and wide thoroughfares and courtyards for communal activities. Its identity was also cemented by the myriad of 15 stores selling specialised ceremonial products79 due to its proximity to the popular Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple – some were old tenants of Blanco Court which was demolished in 1997 to make way for Raffles Hospital.
However, some residents recalled a vastly different sight of Rochor, especially during its formative years. An excerpt of Toh Yong Chuan’s blog details his experience living into Rochor Centre as a 10-year-old in 1979:
“There were three things that Rochor was known for – the transvestites brothels in Johore Road; the street hawkers in Bugis Street; and the bus terminal where SBS bus no. 170 and taxis ply between Singapore and Malaysia.
The bus terminal is still there; but most of the rest are gone. The brothels have made way for a carpark, Bugis Street hawkers were cleared out in 1985 and the shophouses razed for Bugis Junction to be built.” 80
Back in the day, Rochor was bustling with commercial activities. But when the night falls, amongst the hawkers at Bugis Street, coffin and funeral parlours along Rochor Road, residents of Rochor Centre had to endure strong
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
stench from the night soil trucks till 1987, whose deposit centre is where OG Albert Complex is today. Toh Yong Chuan recalls the sensorial memories of Rochor Centre, where he used to live:
tle Johore” for being a popular stopover for Malaysian that arrive from the nearby Queen Street Bus Terminal, which was the terminal for cross border travels between Johor Bahru and Singapore.82
“My neighbourhood stinks, I used to tell my friends as I dissuaded them from visiting. The daylong stench came from the nightsoil treatment centre opposite Rochor Centre.
However, its good times were short-lived when Singapore slipped into its first recession in 1985 and businesses at Rochor Centre experienced a 30-50% decline.83 Rochor also faced a surge of crime and social issues in the 1980s – with lift robberies and theft at shops and carparks happening frequently:
Daily, the nightsoil truck with their distinctive 32 door panels would deposit buckets of human waste at the centre. The smell got intolerable during hot afternoons. The nightsoil trucks, also called honey wagons , made their last run in the mid-1980s, the centre closed, and Albert Complex with its OG department store stands at the site today.
“Thankfully, my two brushes with gangsters were not life-threatening. Once, halfway through a haircut, someone came to collect protection money from my barber and he hastily finished the job, leaving me with a bad hairdo.
The stench of the nightsoil in the day was matched by the odour of urine and vomit in the numerous backlanes and alleys at night. I would hold my breath and cover my mouth when I had to take shortcuts through them.
The other time, I was walking home one evening when someone shouted ‘sio pa, zao ah!’ (Hokkien for ‘there’s a fight, run!’). I sprinted home in one breath” 84
The worst smell was the whiff of death, at least in my head, I would try to avoid a row of coffin shops and funeral parlours along Rochor Road, but yet find the occasional nerve to peep
There was a $1.2 million break-in burglary in a goldsmith which shook the headlines in 1986 as burglars were said to have broken into the shop through a hole
into the shops as I hurried past.
created in the toilet floor of the company directly above it. 85 Similarly, in 1988, another goldsmith at Rochor was robbed by robbers armed with hammers and parangs, who scooped valuables worth $500,000.86
But not all the smells were unpleasant. On my way to school, I would pass by a bread shop and a coffee powder shop next to it. The aroma of freshly baked bread and coffee beans being roasted, when combined, is divine.” 81
In 1985, Rochor Centre earned its reputation as “Lit-
Rochor Centre was also known for its strong community spirit as a spontaneous meeting space not only for the residents but even non-residents and their shopkeepers. Different community and social events in the late
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1970-1980s, such as the Rochor constituency’s carnivals, getais and blood donation drives were held at its podium. Like many children that grew up in Singapore, void deck soccer is the favourite childhood sport in this neighbourhood – with a band of multi-racial boys who call themselves the Rochor Football Club, that play football everyday at the level 4 roof of Rochor Centre.87 Even at the doorstep of an electronics shop at Rochor Centre, various males from all walks of life engage in discussion regarding local and international topics – from politics to sports. Amongst the neighbours, there is a strong sense of ‘kampong spirit’, as seen in the case of resident Oswin and his wife, Nancy:
“For Nancy, what mattered to her the most in the acquisition was whether her ‘sisters’ -two next-door neighbours- will continue to live beside her.They were eventually not able to choose adjoining units in the new estate, but they will be able to live within one floor of each other and continue being neighbours. For Oswin and Nancy, their neighbours are integral parts of their life that cannot be replaced, and this is exemplified by their common interest in potted plants.The shared corridor garden outside their home serves as a common space to further their common interests. Many moments were hence spent interacting over these potted plants, which are placed indistinguishably from each other’s.” 88
In 1977, the first HDB void deck old folks’ home, Rochore Kongsi Home for the aged was open at Rocho Centre. “Kongsi” is a Hokkien phrase that signifies “to share” and illuminates the nature of the home as a place of mutual support.89 It was a home for the destitute elderly, but it represented a landscape of care – not only by their attendants but they are also cared for regularly by the wider community of residents and shop owners in the neighbourhood. Bryan, a 25 years old male student who volunteered at the home said: 48
“The old folks’ home constituted a home-away-from-home for its different residents who are either single or have reasons that prevent them from going home” 90
Living at Rochor Centre were many other bittersweet memories that the community went through together – notably in the $5.5 million interim upgrading programme in 1994 which gave Rochor Centre a new facelift of its iconic façade colours, in 2014 when an electric shop caught fire, in 2008 during the construction of the Downtown Line. Unlike residents of other blocks, their unit numbers were placed underneath the staircases linking the levels, instead of on the walls. They also enjoyed fireworks during the National Day Parade held at the floating platform right at their doorstep:
“We could also see fireworks when NDP was held at the floating platform.Well, until South Beach was built and blocked it.” 91
Despite Rochor Centre’s value to the lives of its residents and the vibrancy that it injects into the neighbourhood, it was slated for demolition in November 2011 to make way for the North-South Expressway (NSE), with its September 2011 deadline for all its tenants to move out. The following is the logic presented for the proposal of the NSE:
“The construction of NSE will benefit residents living in the north and north-eastern sectors of Singapore as it caters to the expected growth in traffic demand generated by new developments there. Running parallel to the Central Expressway (CTE), NSE will help to alleviate the traffic load on the heavily-utilised expressway, as well as on the major arterial roads nearby such as Thomson Road and Marymount Road.” 92
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
It could be argued that Rochor Centre was perceived as a ‘blockage’ to the development of the expressway and by extension, its development of Singapore, despite it being granted the ‘Protected Landmark Status’ by the URA in 2011.93 Under the Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS) it selectively chooses blocks of flats that are ‘old’ and did not maximize land usage, and then chooses to ‘revitalise’ these ‘estates through new developments’.94 Based on a recount by a student to his visit to the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) headquarters for a school project, he saw a miniature model of Singapore and noticed that they were planning to build shopping centres and offices where Rochor Centre was, which begets the question whether the construction of the highway was more of an excuse to remove the old and ill-functioning like Rochor Centre and privileging of the new:
“I noticed Rochor Centre was replaced with an odd-looking building that was designated as a mixed-use development. I was upset because we were told we were moving to make way for a highway, yet I go to URA and see that they’re planning to build a shopping centre or office building there.” 95
Some residents and business owners also felt indignant and angry, given that they have endured many other inconveniences for national development, such as the construction of the Downtown Line, yet they were still forcefully evicted:
“We always suspected that something was going to happen, when some shops could not get their lease renewed. But the announcement still came as a shock, primarily because we’d endured the construction of the Downtown Line right outside our flats.We’d put up with it for a few years, in hopes that we’d enjoy convenience and connectivity eventually. In the end, it felt like it was for nothing.” 99
Affected shopkeepers had to source new locations for themselves and some of them this was not their first relocation – since some had to relocate once from Blanco Court. Some shopkeepers feel defeated, since the uproot signifies abandoning all their memories at Rochor Centre and starting from scratch again, as expressed by Mrs Yeo, a shopkeeper of party supplies shop Yeo GM Trading at Rochor Centre:
Affected residents were afforded priority to Build-ToOrder (BTO) flats in Kallang, Kallang Trivista, which was marketed as a to be a ‘modern development’ with boasting waterfront living, ‘full heights windows’ and modern amenities.96 However, the reaction to the announcement was mixed – there were significant outcries by residents, business owners and the public over the non-participative process of acquisition97:
“I opened the front door and saw the en-bloc notice pasted on it. It informed my family that we had to vacate by a certain date.”98
“It is already our third shift. First, (it was from) Blanco Court, then (from)Victoria Street, and now here. Even if I’ve made memories here, I will have to forget them all because we are moving yet again.”
There are generational differences in attitudes regarding urban development in Singapore. For the older generation, many of them have experienced previous land acquisitions when they were resettled into pubic housing from their overcrowded and un-
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hygienic squatter settlements, which have contributed to Singapore’s economic access. While they are not pleased about the acquisitions, they can accept it due to their geo-histories:
“Rebecca, aged 70, relocated twice in her life. Uprooted from a kampung in the west part of Singapore, she subsequently moved into a shophouse in Chinatown.The shophouse was then acquired in the 1980s and she was offered a flat in Hougang. She did not accept this arrangement and chose to move to Rochor Centre. Acknowledging that life was much tougher in the past, she felt that without these acquisitions, Singapore would not have advanced economically, and life would not have improved.”100
However for the younger generation, Rochor Centre is part of their primal landscape because they spent their formative years there. While they lament the loss of their childhood homes, they understand the benefits associated with it:
The demolition of Rochor Centre proved to be inevitable. The public scrambled down to Rochor Centre during its last days, with many hipsters in the area for photoshoots. Many memory projects also sprouted to document its last piece of heritage before it is demolished:
“Part of me was happy that attention was brought to the landmark, but I was also kind of sad and slightly angry that people were just coming here to take pictures when it has always been here.”103
In April 2017, Rochor Centre was barricaded and the carpark was permanently closed. From 17-21 July 2017, there was a Singapore Armed Forces Military Exercise at Rochor Centre of simulated shooting attacks by terrorists. And finally, on 26 June 2018, the demolition of Rochor Centre began and was completed in April 2019. Today, it is a barren land.
“What I think will be lost would be the spirit that Rochor Centre residents have... For some of us who have been living here for over 20 years.We know the faces ...What we lost cannot be explained by mere words. I think it is the sense of attachment we have to Rochor Centre.We are so used to what are around here... Things which are different [At the resettlement flat] will just be different.... Of course, if you ask the residents around, they can give a variety of answers. But what they can’t give you is this intangible sense of attachment”101
“The childhood, the memories, the sights, the places I hang out with my friends nearby, you know.The Kindergarten, 7-Eleven, coffeeshops.” 102
50
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
Notes Stephen Cairns and Jane M. Jacobs, Buildings Must Die: A Perverse View of Architecture (Cambridge, MA, USA: MIT Press, 2014). 1
Lily Kong and Brenda S.A. Yeoh, The Politics of Landscapes in Singapore: Constructions of “Nation” (Space, Place and Society) (Syracuse University Press; Annotated edition, n.d.). 2
Huo Ning and Heng Chye Kiang, “The Making of State — Business Driven Public Spaces in Singapore,” Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering 6, no. 1 (May 1, 2007): 135–42, https://doi.org/10.3130/ jaabe.6.135. 3
RMJM, “Unmade Designs: Lost Architecture?,” RMJM (blog), March 7, 2017, https://rmjm.com/ unmade-designs-lost-architecture/. 4
“Palimpsest | The Chicago School of Media Theory,” accessed September 28, 2021, https://lucian.uchicago. edu/blogs/mediatheory/keywords/palimpsest/.
Momoyo Kaijima, Laurent Stalder, and Yu Iseki, Architectural Ethnography - Japanese Pavilion Venice Biennale 2018 (Toto, n.d.). 10
11
Kaijima, Stalder, and Iseki.
Jeanette Bicknell, “Architectural Ghosts,” The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 72, no. 4 (November 4, 2014): 435–41, https://doi.org/10.1111/ jaac.12123. 12
URA, “Conservation,” accessed September 28, 2021, https://www.ura.gov.sg/Corporate/Guidelines/ Conservation. 13
Tang Louisa, “Nostalgia: A Force for Good, but a Double-Edged Sword?,” TODAYonline, August 9, 2014, https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/nostalgiaforce-good-double-edged-sword. 14
5
Astrid Erll, Memory in Culture, Palgrave Macmillan Memory Studies (Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire ; New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011). 6
Mayo Martin, “My Childhood Chinatown: How I Lived with Prostitutes, Gangs, Corpses,” CNA Lifestyle, accessed September 28, 2021, https://cnalifestyle. channelnewsasia.com/entertainment/chinatownheritage-history-sago-lane-keong-saik-road-216006. 15
16 7
Erll.
“Keong Saik Road: The Other Side of the Red-Light
District,” accessed October 31, 2021, https://biblioasia. nlb.gov.sg/vol-16/issue-1/apr-jun-2020/keong-saik.
Frances A.Yates,The Art of Memory, Repr. (London: The Bodley Head, 2014). 8
R. C. Atkinson and R. M. Shiffrin, “Human Memory: A Proposed System and Its Control Processes,” in Psychology of Learning and Motivation, ed. Kenneth W. Spence and Janet Taylor Spence, vol. 2 (Academic Press, 1968), 89–195, https://doi.org/10.1016/S00797421(08)60422-3. 9
“Singapore Fake News Law Polices Chats and Online Platforms - BBC News,” accessed September 28, 2021, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-48196985. 17
“Singapore Fake News Law Polices Chats and Online Platforms - BBC News.” 18
Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation: Spatialising Memories of Lost Architecture
51
EL_News, “Singapore Memory Project: Producing Public Memory Through Social Media,” Civic Media Project (blog), March 24, 2016, https://medium. com/civic-media-project/singapore-memory-projectproducing-public-memory-through-social-media948ec8e58753. 19
Kaijima, Stalder, and Iseki, Architectural Ethnography - Japanese Pavilion Venice Biennale 2018.
https://doi.org/10.1080/1472586X.2020.1837005. Claudia Mitchell et al., “Drawings as Research Method,” in Picturing Research: Drawing as Visual Methodology, ed. Linda Theron et al. (Rotterdam: SensePublishers, 2011), 19–36, https://doi. org/10.1007/978-94-6091-596-3_2. 30
20
21
Kaijima, Stalder, and Iseki, Architectural Ethnography - Japanese Pavilion Venice Biennale 2018. 31
Kaijima, Stalder, and Iseki. Christopher Woodward, “Let There Be Light,” The Guardian, April 1, 2006, sec. Art and design, https:// www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2006/apr/01/ architecture. 32
22
Erll, Memory in Culture.
23
Atkinson and Shiffrin, “Human Memory.”
Stephen K. Reed, Cognition: Theories and Applications (Cengage Learning, 2012). 24
“Using Multiple Senses to Improve Memory – Discover UNIL,” accessed September 28, 2021, https:// wp.unil.ch/discoverunil/2016/11/using-multiplesenses-to-improve-memory/.
Sir John Soane’s Museum London, “A Bird’s-Eye View of the Bank of England,” accessed September 28, 2021, http://collections.soane.org/object-p267. 33
25
Elizabeth A. Kensinger and Brendan D. Murray, “Emotional Memory,” in Encyclopedia of the Sciences of Learning, ed. Norbert M. Seel (Boston, MA: Springer 26
Disha Experts, Study Guide for CTET Paper 2 (Class 6 - 8 Teachers) Social Studies/ Social Science with Past Questions 5th Edition (Disha Publications, 2019). 34
35
Erll, Memory in Culture.
36
Lauren Gravitz, “The Forgotten Part of Memory,”
US, 2012), 1128–31, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-14419-1428-6_1008.
Nature 571, no. 7766 (July 24, 2019): S12–14, https:// doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-02211-5.
Kaijima, Stalder, and Iseki, Architectural Ethnography - Japanese Pavilion Venice Biennale 2018.
Bruce Block, The Visual Story: Creating the Visual Structure of Film, TV and Digital Media, 2nd ed. (New York: Routledge, 2007), https://doi. org/10.4324/9780080551692.
27
28
Kaijima, Stalder, and Iseki.
Simone Shu-Yeng Chung, “RE/MAP 2.0 in Tokyo: Drawing on Local Stories to Draw out Hidden Realities,” Visual Studies 0, no. 0 (November 2, 2020): 1–17, 29
52
37
Shawn Seah, My Father’s Kampung (WORLD SCIENTIFIC, 2020), https://doi.org/10.1142/12002. 38
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39
Block, The Visual Story.
40
Block.
41
Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, On Death and Dying, 1969..
42
National Heritage Board, “Hougang Heritage Trail” (National Heritage Board, n.d.), https://www.nhb.gov. sg/-/media/nhb/files/resources/heritage-trails/nhb_ hougang-trail_booklet. 50
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Drawing on Memory,” Current Directions in Psychological Science 27, no. 5 (October 1, 2018): 302–8, https://doi. org/10.1177/0963721418755385. David S. Areford, Locating Sol LeWitt (Yale University Press, 2021).
“Auctioning Will Go on at New Site,” The Straits Times, 1983. 61
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65
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66
National Heritage Board, “Hougang Heritage Trail.”
October 2, 2021, https://stateofbuildings.sg/places/ rochor-centre. 79 “
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67
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“Parting Glances: Rochor Centre in Its Last Days,” The Long andWinding Road (blog), May 19, 2016, https:// thelongnwindingroad.wordpress.com/2016/05/19/ parting-glances-rochor-centre-in-its-last-days/.
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“News Clips: In Search of Old Rochore,” accessed October 2, 2021, http://heresthenews.blogspot. com/2012/02/in-search-of-old-rochore.html. 84
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Loh, “Local Urbicide Or/As National (Re) Development? Investigating Generations of Change At Rochor Centre, Singapore.” 96
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Last Weeks with Rochor. “Soccer Chronicles - Rochor Football Club.” Facebook. Accessed October 31, 2021. https://www.facebook.com/ watch/?v=282989145428035. “Let Imagination Take Flight for the Redevelopment of Paya Lebar Air Base.” Accessed October 31, 2021. https://www.ura.gov.sg/Corporate/Media-Room/Media-Releases/pr20-07. Loh, Kai Quan. “Local Urbicide Or/As National (Re) Development? Investigating Generations of Change At Rochor Centre, Singapore,” 2016. https://www.academia.edu/38693583/ LOCAL_URBICIDE_OR_AS_NATIONAL_RE_DEVELOPMENT_INVESTIGATING_ GENERATIONS_OF_CHANGE_AT_ROCHOR_CENTRE_SINGAPORE. Louisa, Tang. “Nostalgia: A Force for Good, but a Double-Edged Sword?” TODAYonline, August 9, 2014. https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/nostalgia-force-good-double-edged-sword. Martin, Mayo. “My Childhood Chinatown: How I Lived with Prostitutes, Gangs, Corpses.” CNA Lifestyle. Accessed September 28, 2021. https:// cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/entertainment/chinatown-heritage-history-sago-lane-keong-saik-road-216006. Mitchell, Claudia, Linda Theron, Jean Stuart, Ann Smith, and Zachariah Campbell. “Drawings as Research Method.” In Picturing Research: Drawing asVisual Methodology, edited by Linda Theron, Claudia Mitchell, Claudia Mitchell, Ann Smith, Ann Smith, and Jean Stuart, 19–36. Rotterdam: SensePublishers, 2011. https://doi. org/10.1007/978-94-6091-596-3_2. National Heritage Board. “Hougang Heritage Trail.” National Heritage Board, n.d. https://www. nhb.gov.sg/-/media/nhb/files/resources/ heritage-trails/nhb_hougang-trail_booklet.pdf?la=en&hash=3592A6BCB03EED5C7B44F184013D589BAE5E5E86. ———. “Tampines Heritage Trail.” National Heritage Board, n.d. https://www.roots.gov.sg/-/ media/Roots/Files/tampines-heritage-trail/ nhb_tampines_trail-booklet.pdf?la=en. “News Clips: In Search of Old Rochore.” Accessed October 2, 2021. http://heresthenews.blogspot. com/2012/02/in-search-of-old-rochore.html.
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Au-Yong, Rachel, and Jamie Koh. MARCH 7, 2019: Finally, after Demolition Works Stretching over a Period of Nine Months from June 26 Last Year, All That Remains Is an Empty Plot of Land on Which Rochor Centre Once Stood. The Straits Times. The Straits Times, April 9, 2019. https:// www.straitstimes.com/singapore/rochors-iconic-blocks-disappear. Gandy, Joseph Michael. A Bird’s-Eye View of the Bank of England. Sir John Soane’s Museum Collection Online. Accessed November 6, 2021. http:// collections.soane.org/object-p267. Kaijima, Momoyo, Laurent Stalder, and Yu Iseki. Architectural Ethnography - Japanese PavilionVenice Biennale 2018. Toto, n.d. National Library Board. Fishermen at Kangkar Village, before 1984. National Library Board. National Library Board. Accessed November 6, 2021. https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/printheritage/ image.aspx?id=8b50042e-fcbd-4959-8ace32724d3e9d17. Teo, Basil Edward. Rochor Centre as Seen from Tekka Market. The Residential and Commerical Estate Will Be Demolished to Make Way for the Upcoming North-South Expressway in 2016. The Straits Times. The Straits Times, December 31, 2015. https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/goodbye-rochor-centre. Zhen Kang. Kangkar Station Viewed from an LRT Train. Wikimedia. Accessed November 6, 2021. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/ commons/thumb/3/3c/SE4_Kangkar_station. jpg/300px-SE4_Kangkar_station.jpg.
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Self-Disclosure of Research I certify that except where due acknowledgment has been made, the work is that of the author alone; the work has not been submitted previously, in whole or in part, to qualify for any other academic award; the content of the project is the result of work which has been carried out since the official commencement date of the approved research program, any editorial work, paid or unpaid carried out by a third party is acknowledged, ethics procedures and guidelines have been followed. Intellectual Property Rights are retained by Choo Hui Zhi, who asserts moral rights and all other rights to be identified as the author of this work. I have acknowledged all copyright holders on the images and other references used.
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Architectural Ethnography for Memory Preservation Spatliasing Memories of Lost Architecture Dr Simone Chung (Thesis Advisor) NUS Department of Architecture Master of Architecture Programme Semester 1 AY 2021/2022