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J OEYLOW YU HENG ENG J I A W EI
NANYANG COMMUNITY ▶ THE SHOPHOUSE Nanyang. The word meant “Southern Seas” in Chinese, used by Chinese immigrants arriving in the regions including Malacca, Penang, Singapore for trade and job opportuni es. Many Chinese who ended up se ling in nanyang for life, remained fidel to their tradi onal customs and ancestry. They introduced Southern Chinese architecture into Southeast Asia including Singapore. Their homes then, were the archetypal shophouses: the two- to three-storey building typology with shops on the ground storey and dwelling space above. In the new homes of these Chinese, we o en find adop on or adapta on of architectural features from Southern Chinese roots.
ARCHITECTURE MATERIALITY IN SHOPHOUSE In this project, we would like to oer an alterna ve angle in apprecia ng shophouses and culture of the early Chinese se lers through architecture materiality - the choice, assemblage and expression of tradi onal Chinese and alterna ve material. The selected area for documenta on and study is a shophouse block in the Blair Plain Conserva on Area.
THE SHOPHOUSE The shophouse is an urban vernacular form that hosts dierent func ons: residenal, commercial or mixed-use. Tradi onally, this building type was planned with the ground floor for business opera ons and upper levels for residen al (URA, 1995). As a compact building that could accommodate dierent func ons, the shophouse was an ideal typology for family based commercial opera on. Shophouses provided convenient and secured homes for early immigrants se ling in Singapore, especially the Chinese. Built in rows or terraces, shophouses are characterised by the adjoining five-foot way at their front for pedestrian use, with each unit sharing a party wall with its immediate neighbours. They are typically two to three stories high, with a narrow frontage ranging between 4-6 meters and an average depth of 26 m, resul ng in long and narrow plan (J. Davison, 2010). Having developed for over nearly 200 years, shophouses and townhouses have evolved and adapted various styles. These heritage homes are bolstered with culturally rich designs and elements that give us a glimpse into the historical past of our forefathers.
Source: URA (2017)
TOWNHOUSE: The townhouse is a typological varia on evolved from the archetypal shophouse, developed as a result of auent Chinese immigrant families moving out of populated town centres. Townhouses are largely similar to shophouses in terms of layout and internal organisa on, but with a depth up to four mes of a shophouse (Jon SH Lim, 2016). Unlike the shophouse with a public five-foot way for pedestrians to navigate through, the townhouse as a residen al typology adopts a private verandah or forecourt. The introduc on of forecourt may be a ributed to the typical suburban loca on of townhouses, where lots were typically larger (URA, 1995). The spa al organisa on of the townhouse is conceptually similar to the tradi onal chinese courtyard house: the front room func ons as the main hall to receive guest (J. Davison, 2010), instead of a commercial space in its shophouse counterpart. The townhouse wraps itself around an airwell, in a manner that echoes the arrangement of blocks around a courtyard in tradi onal chinese dwellings. The facade of the townhouse reflected the status of its residents, with an array of decora ve embellishments in tradi onal Chinese style and other imported ornamenta on. “the chinese merchants, who take care of all the lesser business deals decorate their houses with the bizarre taste which is typical of their na onâ€? Source: URA (2017)
HISTORY OF THE SITE The shophouse block documented is located in the proximity of Chinatown, bounded by Neil Road, Spo swoode Park Road, and Everton Road. The area is a cluster of shophouses and townhouses, and is mainly residen al today with some commercial func ons. The site was gaze ed for conserva on in 1991 as part of a larger zone termed the Blair Plain Conserva on area. Up to the 1850s, the site was part of a Nutmeg planta on. The area began to be developed towards the end of 19th century, possibly due to demand from a class of wealthy Chinese merchants seeking to move away from overcrowded and unsanitary areas in Chinatown. Lying in a quiet hilly region west of Cantonment Road, the site was an ideal loca on for new homes for well-o Chinese families. A map from 1881 shows the existence of the four roads bounding the site, with a few buildings.
Townhouse
Second Transi onal
Late Style/ Second Transi onal
Late Style
Shophouse
Vene an Renaissance
Second Transi onal
Second Transi onal
Second Transi onal
Late Style
Shophouse
First Transi onal
Art Deco Streamline Moderne
Late Deco/ Early Modern
Modern Style
Contemporary
SPECIAL THANKS TO DR. CHEN YU FOR HER GUIDANCE & NUS BABA HOUSE FOR ARRANGING A PHOTOSHOOT SESSION