Asian architecture

The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1.0: Abstract The purpose of this research paper is to investigate the effective application of concrete vent block in influencing the poetic quality and its implication on user experience. Multisensory architecture design has been given attentiveness these days as it has the ability to communicate the feeling and emotion to the users as well as forming a connection with the environment. The material used in a design can stimulate poetic quality in a space which could be mediated by the senses- sight, touch and hearing. These senses are of prime importance as it would directly affect the user perception to the spaces.

The chosen site in PJ Trade Centre has reviewed the successful attempt of the architect, Kelvin Mark Low, to incorporate with basic raw material to stimulate the multisensory phenomena which would inform us the sensory experiences developed in an environment. As a result, users get to experience a complete embodied and spiritual kind of meanings with the space and the environment. In this paper, concrete vent block has showed its potential as a multisensory design architecture from three different qualities, the play of light and shadow, the richly textured sense of touch from the unfurnished surface, and the play of solid and void

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

whereas the arrangement of the vent block would create different kind of volume. The user experience brought out from this sensory quality would be further discuss later in this paper.

Poetic essence of architecture is very important to our life as it brings in connection between the building and the users, as well to the world outside of the boundaries. By re-sensualization, it will bring back the long lost relationship with the world again. In conclusion, any space which is capable to create sensory experience is known as a multisensory architecture design.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

CHAPTER 2.0: INTRODUCTION Architecture has the ability to acknowledge the feeling and the emotion of the users through sensory design architecture. The topic of the senses in design are discuss to remind people the importance of generating multi-sensory design. According to Sheryl Boyles, it embraces a “multi-sensory approach to the matter, space and scale of architecture being measured equally by the eye, ear, nose, skin, tongue, skeleton and muscle.�

The chosen site in PJ trade Centre has shown a study of the use of multi-sensory design architecture, which in this case, facade formed by concrete vent blocks, as representations to identify its poetic quality which resulted in sensory perception to the users. The concrete vent block is used in a manner which is monotonous and plain, however it creates different type of experiences with material by treating its usage of art rather than a construction material. The heightened details of a raw material also gives an additional way of architectural experience, together it created a sensory overloading journey to the users.

Thus, this paper will focus on the presents of the sensory experiences that were created through emphasizing the materials applied to the users. In this topic, three senses that are uncovered included senses of sight, touch and smell. The highly distinctive sculptural facades in the air vent block allows interesting plays of light and shadow, our eyes will capture the natural daylight through the provision in the blocks. As for senses of touch, the unfurnished surface area created by the vent block also enables a dialogue between user and material by creating a richly textured sense of touch. Last but not least the sounds, which could be captured through the play of solid and void, whereas the arrangement of vent block would create various kind of spatial qualities by means of sound.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

2.1 Research topic The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

Figure 2.1 The bubble diagram above shows the bubble diagram to summarize the content in research topic.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

Research Question Based on the research topic, PJ Trade Centre is studied based on two area of subject, which is by the usage of sustainable material with the integration of multisensory design feature and the poetic qualities created to the users.

Research Objective 1. To record down the reason for concrete vent block as multisensory architecture design in PJ Trade Centre.

2. To record down the poetic quality created from concrete vent block to generate senses within a space.

3. To record down on how the concrete vent block affects the architectural experience to the user.

4. To record the type of senses generated when user contacted with concrete vent block.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

In order to respond to the research objective, the process of exploring data related to the topic has been done thoroughly in order to extract meaningful insights, which can be used to understand the building.

The following questions has been generated to interpret the topic at a deeper level.

1. Why is the concrete vent block considered as multi-sensory architecture design?

2. What are the poetic qualities created by the materials?

3. How does the poetic qualities influence the user experience?

4. How does the texture of the concrete vent block affects the sense of touch?

5. How does the arrangement of concrete vent block create the expression of solid and void?

6. How does the light diffuses through the concrete vent block create the poetic quality to the user?

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

2.2 Overview of PJ Trade Centre, Petaling Jaya

Figure 2.2: The photo shows cinematic view of PJ Trade Centre from afar.

Source: ("PJ Trade Centre - About: The Concept | PJ Trade Centre", 2016)

Sits in the middle of jungle cities, there comes a concrete tropical box like structure which is located on the hilly green rise visible along the Highway at the entrance of Damansara Perdana (Fig.2.2). The building contains a wide spread over 4 towers which contains 20 to 21 levels on each block, houses with office with approximately 335.28 square meter. Its minimalist outlook would often give out a monotonous impression from the first sight, which in fact when you explore deep down to it, you will find out content beyond what it looks from surface.

By the austere use of material, such as concrete vent blocks, commercial link fencing, expanded metal deck, exposed concrete and over burnt bricks, PJ Trade Centre has been built into a piece of art which integrated with attentive and concerned about accuracy and detail, even to the wall faรงade of toilet. In addition, the material is also perfectly formed and arranged in a repetitive manner to respond to the immediate context and the tropical climate, at the same

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

time creating a multisensory feature. Hence, the altering factor has created a poetic values which offers intimacy of the space to the users.

Figure 2.3: The photo shows centre plaza surrounded by foliage.

Source: ("News + Updates | Tujuan Gemilang Sdn Bhd", 2016)

Figure 2.4: The drawings above marks the location of centre plaza.

Source: (“+DA", 2014)

Despite of the unique use of material, Architect Kelvin Mark Low uses sea of mature foliage wrapping up the plaza area on the ground floor, animating the outlook of the concrete box itself (Fig 2.2). By Accommodating to the orientation, the trees were also used to filters out the sunlight penetrates towards the plaza at the same time giving delightful view of scenery to the users in the building.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

CHAPTER 3.0: MULTISENSORY DESIGN FEATURE 3.1 Definition of Multisensory design The multisensory design refers to a new kind of approach, which describes to our personal experience towards the environment by using senses as medium. It is a crucial element to be included to a person so that each of every individual would have different kind of spatial experience to the environment. Multisensory design are perceived by five senses, sight,

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

touch, sound, smell and taste. Senses can emerges from almost everything we understand around us. According to Sheryl Boyles, it embraces a “multi-sensory approach to the matter, space and scale of architecture being measured equally by the eye, ear, nose, skin, tongue, skeleton and muscle.�

Many buildings nowadays have become a generation sacrifices to building that has minimum value of depth. For example, lavish design building which contains excessive amount of element or the building which built mainly for the conventional use. These building has losses its ability to communicate to the users as it does not demonstrated complete understanding between each other.

However, unlike other modernist building which uses material such as steel and glass as their primary material, PJ Trade Centre has made its own way to create a simple architectural language which communes the multisensory design in the building. It uses strong sense of geometry which uses primarily raw and bare material without a single finishes throughout the building that requires minimal amount of maintenance cost, creating an architecture which would grows as it ages. This kind of unrefined material has been arranged in a modular method to form spaces in the building, creating a simple yet undisguised language to the built environment. The austerity of the building enables the users to look deeply into the spiritual dimension by looking into every small details, at the same time engaging to the simplest yet lucid dialogue between built space and the users. Hence, a multisensory design feature has emerges.

3.2 APPLICATION OF CONCRETE VENT BLOCK IN CREATING MULTISENSORY PHENOMENA.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

Most of the tower blocks faรงade in PJ Trade Centre is covered by wall of concrete vent block. These concrete blocks are made into small opening that exposed to the outer environment, hence forming an air vent which would provide protection against heavy wind at the same time allowing sufficient amount of light comes into the space. As literal as its name, the concrete vent block is made out of concrete which is unrefined, resulting in a strong materiality scheme which provides a much more personal experience to the users. Other than the exterior faรงade of the building itself, the concrete vent block can also be found in veranda and toilets to improve air circulation.

Figure 3.1: The photo above shows the concrete vent block covers along the veranda in PJ Trade Centre.

Figure 3.2: The photo above shows the use of concrete vent block as the air vent in the toilet.

Other than functional usage, the permeability of the skin is able to convey the quality of space that makes a strong visual connection inside and outside. It has applied several ideas to the material to stimulate the unexpected effect of multisensory phenomena. First of all, the visual element of the building has been carefully restricted and control so that the privacy of the

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

users can be guarantee. The carefully organised concrete vent façade has created different type of qualities which respond to the surrounding context at the same time, hence these factors would awaken the senses of one’s body by changing the condition of it.

3.3 Architecture and 3 senses According to Juhani Pallasmaa, It is evident that “life-enhancing architecture has to address all the senses simultaneously, and help to fuse our image of self with the experience of the world.”

The user perception of spaces is mediated by the 3 senses, sight, touch and hearing. These three senses contributed mainly to inform us the sensory experience developed in the built space. Senses emerges from the interplay of concrete vent block in PJ Trade Centre.

Below are the poetic quality created by the application of concrete vent block.

1. Light and Shadow 2. Interplay of Texture 3. Solid and Void

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

CHAPTER 4.0: POETIC QUALITIES EMERGE FROM CONCRETE VENT BLOCK 4.1 The Sense of Light 4.1.1 Definition The sense of light describes the ability to interpret the surrounding environment that is contained with lights. The intangibility of the light quality plays an important role as a communicator to shape the atmosphere for the users, so that they would understand and engage in the language of the built space. Through the interplay of light involved in a space, architecture is enlivened to breath in life and this aspect would create a sense of intimacy to the architectural space.

Light does a crucial role to influence the sense of human, as visual perception are mostly likely to influence the feeling of an individual. The light and shadow could be created from form, texture and materials, a successful interplay of light to an object would resulted in rhythmic expression to a space.

4.1.2 User Experience The wall of concrete vent block in PJ Trade Centre were a good example of the application of natural lighting that are well consolidate to the building itself. PJ Trade Centre which function as an office headquarter is designed to create an eco-friendly architecture that uses mainly natural day lighting to light up the space. Hence, the offices area are built close to the concrete vent block so that day lighting could be transmitting to interior space, providing a spiritual working atmosphere to the environment.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

Figure 4.1: The photo above shows the use of concrete vent block to provide natural lighting to the office area.

Source: ("Awards | Tujuan Gemilang Sdn Bhd", 2016)

From the figure shown on above, the concrete vent block were arranged in a manner to create an intrigue atmosphere on a specific time of a day when the light are casted onto the faรงade. East side is built with office spaces so that natural lighting could be transmit to the building interior. Office space is built facing towards the East side of the building so that it could lighten up the space.

Figure 4.2: The area marked in yellow shows the spaces from the figure 2.5.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

The Transition of light The interplay of light through the provision in concrete vent block has brought up a variety of spaces with different atmosphere. The shadows break out from the light when passing through the opening has resulted in layers of different depth, hence giving off a visual richness to the occupants passing through the space.

For instance, starting from the point when users arrive the place, they have to go through a row of darker space that is fenced by boundaries made of enclosed material, then it would eventually bring forward to the brighter area lighten up by the light diffuses through the provision of vent block. (Fig2.7 and 2.8)

Figure 4.3: The area marked by arrow shows the transition of space from photo shows in figure 4.5 to photo shows in figure 4.4.

Source: ("Awards | Tujuan Gemilang Sdn Bhd", 2016) Figure 4.4 & 4.5: The photos above show the transition of light intensity which led the users from one area to another.

Source: ("Awards | Tujuan Gemilang Sdn Bhd", 2016)

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

Meanwhile in the veranda corridor, the provision in blocks also restricted the view from one point along the path, so that users would have notice the beauty which lies in the building itself. Warmness has been adding up to the concrete box so that the light and shadow would blends well into the inner landscape.

4.2 The Interplay of Texture 4.2.1 Definition

Figure 4.6: The photos above show the raw texture of concrete vent block.

Source: ("Awards | Tujuan Gemilang Sdn Bhd", 2016)

The materiality of concrete vent block is not just applied for aesthetic wise, but other than that it widens the perception beyond mere object. It looks into the truth and honesty of the material itself by revealing the primitive essence of it. PJ Trade Centre conveys the message with respect to the inborn and insight quality of material, where the beauty of the inherent construction has been retained. The unfurnished material has form a connection between two different sources, one on our sensory of touch and the other with the outer environment, which has a completely different attribution than ours.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

Figure 4.7: The photos above show the occupants leaning towards the fence built by modular of concrete vent blocks.

Source: ("Awards | Tujuan Gemilang Sdn Bhd", 2016)

4.2.2 User Experience Our skin is capable of reading the texture and temperature of an object. The heat absorbs by the concrete vent block has directly distributed to the surrounding environment by radiating the temperature. Transaction between temperature, body, thinking and environment has been created through the intangible medium. Hence, it is just about accepting the temperature of a space to form a tactile linkage with the built space environment.

In contrast with the building nowadays, man-made material which can be commonly seen nowadays has failed to communicate the tactile quality since the materials are design the obtain perfection of building. The unfurnished surface of concrete vent block also enables a dialogue between user and material by inducing a richly textured sense of touch. It creates a focused vision that pushes the users out of the line as a mere spectators, nevertheless offers the ability to communicate with the surrounding environment.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

According to Juhani Pallasmaa, “An architectural work should offers pleasurable shapes and surfaces molded for the touch of the eye and the other senses, but it also incorporates and integrates physical and mental structures, giving our existential experience a strengthened coherence and significance.�

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

4.3 Solid and Void 4.3.1 Definition The relationship between solid and void in a building has made up an essential role to shape the architectural space. According to Sonia C.N. and Shailaja Nair, “Vision is directional while sound is omnidirectional. Thus, sight isolates while sound integrates.� Sounds which is defined as omnidirectional, could be captured or transmitted through the play of solid and void.

In this case, the various arrangement of concrete vent block would have create of spatial qualities provide the medium for transmission of sound.

Depending on the material used, sounds can be convey from one to another as long as there is medium in between. However, an enclosed thick material would possibly reduce the continuity of hearing. The integration of the audible sound is to provide understanding of the space without actually reaching to it. Architecture itself is the representative of dead matters, however with the acoustic representation into the space, it would have changes the perception towards the space.

Figure 4.8: The photos above show courtyard rest room on upper floor.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

4.3.2 User Experience In our case study building as shown in Figure 2.10, the interior and exterior of courtyard rest room area is separated by the use of concrete vent block, together with the integration of the over-burnt brick wall which takes up minimal use of the facade. The design intention of this facade is to provide acoustical enclosure and privacy to the occupants between the exposed and unexposed space, whereas people would naturally perceive the level of privacy space themselves. Besides, the users are still able to engage in acoustical relationship to the outer environment although there is a barrier in between the space.

Figure 4.9: The photo above shows the view out from the interior of courtyard restroom.

In overall, the integration of solid and void with the use of concrete vent block has enhances the acoustical properties which comes in different layers as the user travels through the entire journey.

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The Effective Application of Concrete vent block in Influencing the Poetic quality and its implication on User experience.

CHAPTER 5.0: Conclusion Poetic essence in an architecture is something very crucial to our life as it brings in connection between the building and the users, as well to the outer world beyond the boundaries. PJ Trade Centre is a fairly good example which exhibits the poetic quality in the space through the simplest form of sustainable material. The concrete vent block selected out of the other material takes up an important place in expressing the multisensory design feature. It evokes a strong poetic feelings of peaceful bliss by integrating the immediate context to the building.

When conducting the case study paper, I’ve understand that the application of material should not be restrained to a physical element which follows the current trend of contemporary architectural. However, it should be crafted to promote better understanding between the users and the architecture itself. Both of these element should be able to commune to each other. The initiative to apply multisensory design element to the architecture could make it possible to avoid the crisis of globalization in architectural style around the world, where all the architectural element has lost its language to commune with the users.

Through proper planning of material arrangement, it would sensualize the architectural form which provides sensory experience that will make it possible to bring back the long lost relationship. As Finnish architect Juhani Uolevi Pallasmaa puts it, ‘In memorable experiences of architecture, space, matter and time fuse into one singular dimension, into the basic substance of being, that penetrates our consciousness. A successful multisensory design has the ability to express the presence of atmosphere and the state of mind to communicate with the users in the containing built space. In conclusion, as long as the building is compromised with poetic quality that could be perceive by senses, it is considered as a multisensory design.

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CHAPTER 6.0: Reference 1. Architecture for the Senses. (2016). Iva.velux.com. Retrieved 27 June 2016, from

http://iva.velux.com/competitions/international-velux-award/posts/architecture-forthe-senses

2. Blindness, F. (2016). Multisensory design - Fighting Blindness. Fighting

Blindness. Retrieved 27 June 2016, from http://www.fightingblindness.ie/multisensory-design/

3. Theories of Malaysian Architecture. (2015) (1st ed.). Retrieved from

https://issuu.com/jessielyee/docs/theories_of_malaysian_architecture

4. C.N., S. & Nair, S. (2014). ARCHITECTURE - Time Space & People (1st ed., p.

Understanding Multisensory Architecture).

5. Pallasmaa, J. (2012). The eyes of the skin. Chichester, West Sussex [U.K.]: Wiley.

6. Zumthor, P. (2006). Atmospheres. Basel: BirkhaĚˆuser.

7. Zumthor, P., Oberli-Turner, M., & Schelbert, C. (2006). Thinking architecture.

Basel: BirkhaĚˆuser.

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