A Catalogue of Works: Aaron Lau Architectural Portfolio

LAU _ AARON

a c at a l og of works

5 HARCOURT STREET HAWTHORN EAST 3123 VICTORIA AUSTRALIA P: + 6 1 4 3 0 4 7 7 8 5 0 E: aalau7690@gmail.com SKYPE:

aaron.lau.yee.yin 1

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_CONTENT SYNECDOCHE

STUDIO ‘SUSPENDED BY HISTORY’ - memorial/museum/park [year 4 fall 2011]

PLATFORM

STUDIO ‘INVERTED COURTYARDS’ - living platform/(s) for living [year 4 spring 2011]

_border as enclosure _border as interface

CODING

STUDIO ‘TEARING DOWN THE WALL’ - a prison hybrid [year 5 spring 2012]

Special thanks to Dr. Andrew Saniga and Mr. Danius Kesminas for your guidance and supervision on this amazing trip. Biggest congratulations to my fellow colleagues and friends for a successful semester as well as all the help and encouragement Last but not least, a shout-out my Lordto and Jesus Christ.

The wall as atomediator theSaviour, randomness and unpredictability of

graffiti placement and delineation

DISPLACEMENT

LITHUANIA STUDIO ‘MEMORY & NOSTALGIA’ - cinema/memorial hybrid

[Year 5 winter 2012 ]

[year 5 spring 2012]

THESIS

‘the FOLDED MAT’

S peculations of a new city typology at Melbourne’s edge

INFILL

STUDIO ‘MEDIASPACE’ - infilling the heritage void [Year 3 fall 2009 ]

[Year 3 fall 2009]

[Year 2 2008]

‘HOLO-MINANCE’ SKIN

environmental systems; sustainable facade panel

NIKE SPORTSWEAR INSTALLATION Pavilion, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

5

6

SYNECDOCHE

STUDIO ‘SUSPENDED BY HISTORY’ - memorial/museum/park [year 4 fall 2011]

tutor: Billy Kavellaris

[exhibited in ‘Synecdoche’, The Hon. Evan Walker Design Studio 2011 exhibition]

7

5 2

4

3 “The dead and the unborn are as much members of society as the living. To dishonour the dead is to reject the relation on which society is built – the relation of obligation between generations. Those who have lost respect for their dead have ceased to be trustees of their inheritance. Inevitably, they lose the sense of obligation to future generations. The web of obligations sinks to the present tense” - Douglas Kelbaugh

8

MEMORIAL/ M U SEVICTORIA UM / PAMARKET RKQUEEN _ R E C O N C E P T UA L I Z ING THE MEMORIAL

The Synecdoche design studio is underpinned by interdisiplinary speculations which recognize that architectural outcomes are directly influenced by dynamic socioeconomic, political; and technological forceswherecultureplaysthemediatingrole.

A vacant carpark of the existing Victoria marketplace was the site for intervention. Initial research indicates the presence of a ‘forgotten’ cemetery beneath, causing a reluctance to develop the site. My proposal hinged to expose the particular history of the site, rendering visible its specific memories and acknowledging its significance with the hope of addressing both past and present to affect positive future outcomes for the city.

The Synecdoche is derived through a narrative, where history acts literally as structure that supports and suspends programme in a linear motion of time; this drives both the visual, programmatic and conceptual premise of the proposal.

Essentially, through the synecdoche, the museum resolves itself into three parts, museum as archive, monument and memorial. The fact that it is a museum, rather than a freestanding monolithic commemorative object, already suggests an active and meaningful engagement with history, rather then the passive contemplation implied by the traditional monument.

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Together with the injection of culture and new public space, these programs have the ability to regenerate imagination of the city.

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1 1. MEMORIAL PARK 2. VERTICAL CEMETERY 3. ABORIGINAL MUSEUM 4. HISTORICAL SPACE 5. GREEN ROOF 6. ART SPACE 7. PERFORMANCE SPACE

sectional perspective 9

RESPONSE

present

?

s t a g e reconnection

primary axis

h i s t o r y

roots

Urban gesture no.1 - to complete the urban edge by reconnecting Dudley & Therry streets.

performing making learning watching

memorializing remembrance

memorializing remembrance

m em ori a l

past

Victoria Market in itself is a diverse ‘city within a city’.

Standing out within the urban map as an edge of an incomplete grid system.

performing making learning watching

e

performance a r t

of ‘suspended

pastpresentfuture

neglected space used as carpark

future

tim

The site’s former history as a cemetery was overwritten. Layers of history lie neglected as the site is currently utilized as a carpark

time

SITE

history (literally)

by

history’

permeable Urban gesture no.2 - Secondary axis connects pedestrian movement from Franklin and Queen streets.

SHED typology

1. Continuing the historical market language and typology CBD

flags greenteaff ry

1

program is chosen to activate the surrounding area.

qu een st.

2. Greenery from Flagstaff to inform and locate the memorial park 3. Museum and theatre entrances located along the Queen street periphery

ley dud

st.

3

st.

queen st.

t

peel st.

secondary axis

ry her

2 in nk l a r f

st.

4

urban intervention 10

10

9

rr y the

peel st.

queen st.

6

7

st.

8

5 y dle

du

st. n fra

1. Aboriginal 2.

Monument Core 3.

Follies - unprogrammed sheds 4.

Theatre spillout 5. History 6.

Green Roofscape 7. Art 8.

Viewing platform 9. Performance 10. Stage & back of house

n kli

st.

franklin st.

masterplan 11

PEELING AWAY THE LAYERS OF THE MEMORIAL 1. Representing & remembering the 9000 unnamed bodies that were neglected through

du

a picturesque imagery of a cemetery landscape.

LANDSCAPE & TREES - greenery to represent life

re

peel

t

et

his tor ica l ax is

T H E AT R E MACHINE

n vi ct

A R T MACHINE

ma

HISTORY MACHINE

rk

s axi y t i c

ia

s axi l a ic tor s i h

+

or

+

st

stree

ee

=

ey

qu

f fs a te n s Concreteg d - juxtaposed with the landscape a toFRAMES attempts evoke tensions between life an death l r f a g FOLLIES - unprogrammed shelters, rest & event generators

dl

et

fra nk lin str ee t

2.

VERTICAL GRAVE / LIVING MONUMEN T

ABORIGINAL LANDSCAPE

Challenging the typical flat graveyard typology.

Implying a future possibility of building vertically to prevent overrunning the ground. A living, event-filled core.

vs

8 columns representing 8 groups buried at the cemetery, holding up the & suspending the stacked programs

th

queen

street

er

ry

str

ee

t

3. MUSEUM JOURNEY PAST. PRESENT. FUTURE. “past” - experiencing aboriginal culture at ground level through the museum embeded in landscape, acknowledging their connection with the land. History machine facing Victoria market. “present” - journey upwards through the vertical memorial, towards the present, the contemporary art museum “future” - art and theatre as an

ever-evolving program

exploded axonometric of volumes 12

view from peel street

new programs to activating the site at night 13

“...Challenging the typical flat topography of the graveyard, a living vertical monument instead of the traditional contemplative monolith.�

vertical cemetery 14

Eisenman’s Berlin memorial - Concrete block juxtaposed representing the unnamed with a the living object

Memorials and pause spaces for contemplation & reflection “in the midst of ongoing living history” better suits the everchanging outdoor streetscape, serving as a catalyst for infecting change and urban regeneration of urbanity and the city.

A public space that is also spiritual in nature

“...Two cantilever bridges, suspended from the memorial core provide instruments for experimentation, both visually and physically, with the landscape. The walk from the core to the roof garden, opens historical views towards the market & subsequently towards Flagstaff gardens without ever losing connection with the geography and events transpiring around the memorial park”

machinary for the senses

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PLATFORM

STUDIO ‘INVERTED COURTYARDS’ - living platform/(s) for living [year 4 spring 2011]

tutor: MARJAN CERHOVIN

[distinction; exhibited in University of Melbourne EYES exhibition]

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s u b urban living

isolated urban sprawl

typical city highrise

no interaction no sense of community no green space

community blocks

some visual interaction, no personal garden

platform housing

social interaction, personal garden, high density community living

“There is a contradictory desire in our utopia”

We want two extremes, the intensive meeting plavce, the urban environment, the meeting place; and we want the secluded open spce where we are alone in nature, the “Australian Dream”.

Suburbia is an expression of those desires - needing the city and wanting the country - but it provides neither. A ‘paradox of suburbia’ emerges from this conflict.

“the conflict between downtown and the suburbs is a phony, the two are complementary parts of a whole” Victor Gruen, 1954 18

I N V E R T E D C O U R T Y A R D S MACAULAY ROAD, NORTH MELBOURNE _RETHINKING MID-DENSITY HOUSING

The proposal challenges typical notions of homogenous and indistinguishible social housing, and their place in Melbourne’s inner suburbs. How then can a proposal for medium density housing integrate these ideals when site constraints, solar gain and overshadowing have dictated an optimal mass that is as slim as possible?

VOID POTENTIAL: Through an exercise in composition, the articulation of two unit types carved dynamic voids that create an architecture of permeability while addressing formal and social juxtapositions. Voids act as interfaces, entrances, communal spaces, private spaces, even public spaces, the possibilities of in-fill or out-fill are tremendous. In hindsight, voids allow for the injection of both private “back/front/court-yards”as well as common spaces that provide elevated greenspaces. Also, they allow for neighbourly ‘confrontations’, occasions that rarely happen in typical density housing configurations.

Encased in a logical structural system, the void extends its role of forming private/semiprivate open space further as it also extends the possibilities of future transformation as per current condition of the owner.

Finally, an injection of identity and a sense of belonging is achieved not only through the ability of the owner to congure a specific kit of parts, the use of the symbolic silhouette of a ‘monopoly house’, hopes to not only create a unique roofscsape but act as an element of identication as well as literally denote an architectural platform.

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1

5

node proximity in north melbourne

programmatic density

2

optimizing form

6

existing site conditions

site conditions

3

optimizing diagonal flow

7

typical block layout

4

negotiating the slope

8

micro unit optimization for communal spaces and private gardens

capturing the northern sun

permeability through blocks

urban intent 20

B

A’

A B’

north melbourne figure ground

section

A-A

section

B-B

urban design proposal 21

11 894 sq m optimised plot area

2.4 floor ratio area 58% covered area 69.5% built open area

28 962 sq m Gross Floor Area

94 /ha

73.9% 8784.7 sq m residential housing

133 lots 5560 sq m residents

29% 3452 sq m residential communal areas

13.7% 1626 sq m commercial & retail

44.5% 5299 sq m Public open space

/ha

82 units

42 units 4551 sq m Apt block 1

20 units 2116.8 sq m Apt block 2

1.5% 423.4 sq m health & child care kindergarten

282

block 3 type 1 single - 10units type 2 duplex - 8 units type 3 duplex - 2 units

block 2 type 1 single - 10 units type 2 duplex - 8 units type 3 duplex - 2 units

block 1 type 1 single - 36 units type 2 duplex - 4 units type 3 duplex - 2 units 16-20 lots 978 sq m visitors & public

20 units 2116.8 sq m Apt block 3

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urban design proposal 23

carparking

public park commercial podium residential blocks

circulation galleries & bridges

private green terraces

permeable block

- elevated bridges and voids

private void

- breaking typical single unit configurations

semi-private void

- inverted courtyard for 4 neighbours

vertical relationship & identity

type studies and void potential - interaction/expansion possibilities

single unit (12x8)

single unit + courtyard

DUPLEX/TRI-PLEX + PITCH ROOF EXTENSION

type composition diagram architectural intent 24

single

a c c o m o d a t i n g G R O W T H

duplex/tri-plex

unit configurations 25

elevated park

a l e r c i m m c o

e s p i n 1 2

7

6

6

4

4

3

1

COMMERCIAL PROGRAMS 1. garage/verhicular + bike services 2. supermarket 3. retail 4. lobby 5. childcare 6. eateries 7. management offices

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DUPLEX SINGLE PRIVATE GARDEN COMMERCIAL PUBLIC

plans + elevations 27

C O M M E R C I A L public spine 28

“living platform denotes an architecture of flexibility and adaptability that supports everyday living�

COMM E RCIAL elevated links 29

+21.8 platform

7 +17.9 9 8

+14.6 duplex

2

+11.3 residential + communal

1

7 +8.0 residential 3

7 +4.0 commercial

8

5 6

+0.0 commercial + carpark 4 3

sectional detail

DUPLEX UNIT WITH PITCH-ROOF OPTION 1. timber pergola 2. timber backyard patio 3. north-face horizontal timber louvres 4. glass handrail 5. balcony extension 6. steel tension cable attached to slab 7. aluminium frame window (top hung) 8. aluminium sliding door 9. perforated steel-alloy mesh attached to structure 10. loft floor addition

kit of parts 30

neighbouring void 31

physical model 32

“man may readily identify with his owb hearth, but not easily with the town in which it is placed. Belonging is a basic emotional need - its associations are of the simplest order� (Alison & Peter Smithson)...

only then can we call a place home

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_border as enclosure _border as interface

CODING

STUDIO ‘TEARING DOWN THE WALL’ - a prison hybrid [year 5 spring 2012]

tutor: JUSTYNA KARAKIEWICZ, STEVE HATZELIS [distinction]

The wall as a mediator to the randomness and unpredictability of graffiti placement and delineation

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280km

PRISON HYBRID QUEEN VICTORIA MARKET _A NEW URBAN PENETENTIARY TYPOLOGY

The thesis attempts to challenge negative preconceived notions of “PRISONS” to reinstil an urban penitentiary type into the city fabric that is desirable, focusing on the prison wall and what it means to be in the city? This occurs primarily with the prison wall.

A ‘Wall’ is defined as ‘a continuous structure that encloses or divides an area of land’. The wall defines the ‘social physic that two bodies cannot share the same place at the same time’. This forces people to remain on their side, primarily for their well-being, similar to the main scenario of having a prison wall.

40% 36%

increase (Source:

in

Department

prison

of

population Justice

the

Corrections

last

10

Statistics,

years.

Victoria)

of the prisoners return to prison within two years of release.

(Source:

Report

on

Government

Services

2012

-

Council

of

Australian

Governments

(COAG))

_Despite prison population and recidivism significantly increasing over the last decade, the incarceration structure in Australia has failed to see advancements throughout the past century and desperately requires innovation and reimagination.This debate creates an opportunity to rethink the future of prison designs. Adding to this debate are the locations of prisons at the fringes, away from the city, framing a negative perception that prisoners are transported away akin to garbage.

_Site as ‘terrain vague’ Strategically located at the northwest edge of the Hoddle grid, the site currently functions as a car park and is under-utlized. Despite being surrounded by the market, residential, office towers, and education institutions, the lack of a public presence renders the site a ‘terrain vague’. This generates great potential for a significant social and architectural intervention.

_‘TEARING DOWN THE WALL’ The core concept was a redefinition of the wall, manifesting in a narrative coined ‘walls as enclosure’ and ‘walls as interface’. By intersecting these two wall definitions, the conditions generate a level of permeability and acceptance to happen between the city and the prison. _The wall as architecture; Through a rigorous process of diagramming, the new typology becomes catalytic for the emergence of programmatic hybrids such as places for living, education, art and agriculture. Art-centric programs become priority as they gradually increase the scope of prisoner-societal interaction. This is crucial as only via a state of trust can the intervention start to merge a symbiosis with the city morphology.

Where the re-defined ground plane and wall meet, social connectivity and networks are forged that engages its contextual adjacencies, becoming the hidden gem that actually increases its value; breaking a deadly cycle of recidivism and negative stereotypes.

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white red orange yellow cyan light green dark green blue purple brown black

Through a process of data collection, image averaging and pixellation, the influences of graffiti on the privatization of Union Lane was visualized. The investigations on graffiti and street art reveals its potential as means of education as well as a medium of social blurring and breaking of social hierarchies.

graffiti and privatization of public space - laneway privatization diagram 38

site flows and intensities 39

program generator 40

urban intent 41

STRATEGY OF THE WALL WALL AS ARCHITECTURE HORIZONTAL PROGRAMMING

“The wall as architecture” was basically an ordinary strip of space delineated by a minimal architectural intervention, a space waiting to accommodate program.”

potential p

GREEN GRAFFITI

edestrial fl

ow

ALL W N ISO

URBAN W ALLS

PR

PROGRAM BASED ON POTENTIAL OF PRISONER-SOCIETY strategy of the wall INTERACTION

FORUM

“the wall as architec ture”

ATTRACTION VALUE: 1 ONE ON ONE, CLASSROOM STYLE

TRIANGL

E

horizontal programming ATTRACTION VALUE: 3 a strip of space delineated VISUAL, PERFORMANCE by minimal architectural VALUE: 5 intervention, a ATTRACTION space waitINDIRECT ing to accomodate program

PROGRAM PARAMETERS interaction + attraction + security interaction

QVM

distance from core attractiveness DISTANC E

interaction

security

FLAGSTAFF

pe rfo rm an ce ga (th l le ea ry tre (g ) ra ffi ti/ ar tg ar de n

pr is

on

co re stu di lea os r ga nin rd g s en pa s ce s

)

interaction

PROGRAM BASED ON POTENTIAL OF PRISONER-SOCIETY programINTERACTION based on potential for

prisoner-societal interaction ATTRACTION VALUE: 1 ONE ON ONE, CLASSROOM STYLE ATTRACTION VALUE: 3 VISUAL, PERFORMANCE

INTERAC

ATTRACTION VALUE: 5 INDIRECT

TION

interaction

distance from core core distance from

iinteraction nteraction

aattractiveness ttractiveness

interaction

ssecurity e c u

r

i

t

y

program parameters interaction + attraction + security 42

transforming opaque walls into interfaces with transparency, allowing varying degrees of information exchange and potential interactions

programmatic and formal parameters 43

44

1. By extruding the site, the prison becomes an impermeable wall... this is not ideal

5. Reorient the prison strip to reconnect the grid

2. Imagining the site as a field of horizontal strips or walls) for horizontal pemeability, making it accessible to the city

3. Maximum clashing between ‘walls’, generating two potential cirrculationary types: an enfilade (a suite of rooms formally aligned with each other)

4. ...and Serendipity (a meandering, spontaneous route in which one finds their own paths)

6. Lifting the prison strips for security

7. Gradual bleeding of walls - bringing the prisoner back to the ground plane through ART as a first step to the process of ‘reintegration into society’ as well as creating a public loop through the building

8. Inserting catalyst program into strips to activate walls, functions which encourage interaction. For example: performance spaces, art facilities

45

in-between outdoor public art installations

triple-volume plaza

activated ‘laneways’

spatial vignettes 46

an urban wall 47

a public forum

site activation around a 24 hour lifecycle 48

tearing down the wall - a prison hybrid

49

50

Special thanks to Dr. Andrew Saniga and Mr. Danius Kesminas for your guidance and supervision on this amazing trip. Biggest congratulations to my fellow colleagues and friends for a successful semester as well as all the help and encouragement Last but not least, a shout-out to my Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

[Year 5 winter 2012 ]

DISPLACEMENT

LITHUANIA TRAVELLING STUDIO ‘MEMORY & NOSTALGIA’ - cinema/memorial hybrid tutor: Dr. ANDREW SANIGA

[distinction; exhibited in ‘Lithuania Travelling Studio 2012 exhibition]

51

52

Current preoccupations of heritage calls for the preservations of what is beautiful, old and has significance; however my opinion denotes that it should also be about keeping what is ugly, normal, mundane and absurd..only through the preservation of these layers can one truly understand a city’s past and periods it went through.

‘MEMORY’

- reformation square, Vilnius _interventions on a forgotten landscape.

Studio Displacement calls for the design of a ‘space’ that recalls the displaced person/ people of Lithuania. My approach questions what Lithuania should preserve from the Soviet era and can preservation in turn be a catalyst that recalls the displaced? _‘Memory’ celebrates the idea of heritage not in the form of an object, but through a memorialization of memories, collected, stored and then projected.

The Paradox of preservation There has been an escalation of nostalgia, but also a decay of memory.

‘Memory’ draws on this paradox, utilizing nostalgia as a vehicle for recall.

53

SCAN THE

THE QR CODE FOR UNALTERED TRUTH

“the repackaging of history for tourists masks the truth that the city struggles to come out from under the shadow of its history” Harnessing simple technologies like the qr code as an educational tool and convenient way to distribute information and knowledge of Lithuania’s past. Only through knowledge can one act.

54

Instead of the monument, ‘memory’ is immaterial, reflecting the space that it inhabits and rendering its signinficance nil; people (literally) become part of the object, people become the object, that regenerate the square to perform its duty as a public space; a space by Lithuanians, for Lithuanians

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“i attempt to initiate a dialogue with the viewer that could instigate transformation, one person at a time... �Jonas Mekas - displaced Lithuanian cinematographer

56

“you dont see how Lithuania is today: you see it through the memories of a Displace Person...�

Jonas Mekas - displaced Lithuanian cinematographer

sections 57

58

59

Memory seeks to create the inverse condition that the Soviet rule had in Lithuania; reliving memories not of fear and displacement but of attraction, communion and a nostalgic longing for RE-placement

‘In our land there is still big heat’ - A satirical drawing showing Lithuanians feeling Stalin’s rays 60

‘Memory’ - public space for cinema 61

62

[year 5 spring 2012]

THESIS

‘the FOLDED MAT’

speculations of a new city at Melbourne’s edge supervisor: Corbett Lyon

[exhibited in ‘GRADEX’ - Final Year Graduates Exhibition]

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“Cities are plugged into the globe of history like capacitors: they condense and conduct the currents of social time."

(James Holston, Cities and citizenship, 1995: 35)

melton

33k m

melbourne

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THE FOLDED MAT - M E L T O N , V I C A N E W C I T Y T Y P O L O G Y at the EGDE

“Recent changes to Melbourne’s UGB (urban growth boundary) relinquishes Melton’s satellite city status as it is planned to become a part of Melbourne’s future conurbation” ...

Melbourne is a city sprawling out of control. ...

The Folded Mat is a speculative exercise in transplanting the familiar ‘HoddleGrid’ onto aneverchanginglandscape at Melbourne’s edge. Melton is the site of experimentation, a growing suburb 33kms away from Melbourne city.

The new city pulls the landscape onto the facade, simultaneously addressing issues on two extremes, indeterminate ‘edge-conditions’ and ‘nimbyism’.

From a distance, the ‘green wall’ retains characteristics of suburbia, while as an outcome generates this new & generouspublicgreenspace,allowingfortheinfiltrationofrealms normally associated only with the ground level of a city.

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2012

2020

2030

1. MELTON’S UNDEFINED EDGE between the urban & countryside is the epitome of Melbourne’s inability in planning to control sprawl & accomodate growth.

With recent changes to the Urban Growth Boundary (UGB), Melton’s projected growth is as visualized

fold

+ wall

= mat

2.WALL_MAT HYBRID

What type(ology) can act as a container of sprawl as well as a framework for sustainable city growth? By hybridizing a wall and mat urbanism, a new fold typology for the city is generated

wall-mat 66

sprawl 70’s 80’s 90’s present

melbourne cbd melton

radial city

melbourne cbd melton

edge city

3. THE FOLDED MAT..

At a macro level, the fold could be understood literally as both a container of sprawl as well one that has a tsunami effect..returning itself to Melbourne.

4.EDGE CITY

It flips the typical radial city model, where the city has one centre and free to sprawl into an edge-city that radiates inwards

perimeter

+

urban

=

2.56mil SQM 256 HA

peri-urban melton

5. However, with suburbia prospering compared to in the city due to its openness and lush landscapes, can this two conditions be merged at an urban scale?

melbourne

6.Transplanting the Hoddle grid

...it becomes a framework for placing an urban condition at the edge which is familiar to many, one way of metaphorically proclaiming a returning of Melton to Melbourne

7. SCALE AND DENSITY

Melton grows annually at 5.1% annually, equating to 5000 new residents; Hence, the proposed density: Melbourne CBD the FOLD Melton 8200/km² 210/km² 2500/km² 67

8.GRID DEFORMATION

The new grid is adapted to the topography, neighbourhood proximity, vehicular & pedestrian access.

Program is placed like bands along the grid for maximum interaction

2

mix-use 50% open space (green)

housing 20%

single/multi storey

9.TRANSFORMATION FOR DIVERSITY

commercial+offices 7% public facilities 8%

infrastructure 15%

roads,trams,parking

suburbia inner suburbs

cbd

inner suburbs

suburbia

existing urban typology

3

In section, program isn’t stacked and distributed like a typical radial city model, instead woven & merged Transformation from dominant centre into a continuous mat; less car dependency + encouraging vertical urban activity

1

5

4.

new city

+0

10.VALLEYS AND PEAKS

The city is lifted and sunken contextually, in turn generating a diversity in building heights & volumes.

+40

+0

11.PUBLIC ROOF & GREEN CONTINUITY ...allows public life that normally occurs on ground level to gradually invade a different plane

12.EDGE DEFINITION

The folded mat becomes a model not only to contain sprawl...

13.GROWTH

...but one that sets a framework for growth and mutation that strengthens and prospers the existing city

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country-side

2

6

1

8

10

7

9

1. PUBLIC SPHERES 2. HOUSING/MIX-USE 3. UNIVERSITY 4. EDUCATION STRIP 5. PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE 6. PUBLIC 7. COMMERCIAL STRIP 8. MARKET 9. FOREST STRIP 10. SUBURBAN HOUSING

(sub)-urban 69

from a distance, the ‘green mountain’ retains the characteristics that has made suburbia so desirable

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As the building is located at the very edge of Melbourne, interesting clashes of lifeforms may emerge over time

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the perimeter urbanism becomes a gateway that identifies Melbourne’s edge; the city becomes signage

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the scale of the landscape lends itself as a contemplative monolith that can be experienced in the automobile.

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Program located on the wall’s periphery retain amazing views to the country-side horizon, greatly increasing its desirability and value.

An edge condition that distinctly demarcates the countryside and (sub)urban is generated.

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The roof gradually falls and rises at the foot of the mountain as well as at public spheres, which provide surprising vistas and relief from the order of the grid.

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INFILL

STUDIO ‘MEDIASPACE’ - infilling the heritage void [Year 3 fall 2009 ]

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A “gathering� denotes a place where people meet, be it with similar intentions or not. Weaving through a left-over void in Ipoh town’s urban context, the proposal intends to generate a contemporary piece of architecture, a dynamic infill that embraces technological innovation and serves as a new public node for the society.

the frontage

infill strategy 78

inside-outside connection

carving public plazas 79

roof photography studios

art gallery

learning

first meeting

cafe admin

lobby public plaza lobby

entrance plaza

interactive plaza courtyard plaza

experiential

ground

infill plans 80

unique but sensible - respecting the heritage row 81

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[Year 3 fall 2009]

‘HOLO-MINANCE’ SKIN

environmental systems; sustainable facade panel

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“holo-minance” skin holographic self-illuminating sun reflector cladding

ECOMIMICRY - innovative nature inspired design

aaron lau yee yin I tham chee yeen 0701P59724 I 0703P61805

ILLUMINATING THE STREETSCAPE ALL DAY LONG, WITH ZERO ENERGY, WHILE HARVESTING IT. INCORPORATING HI-TECH MATERIALS & SOLAR HARVESTING TO CREATE TRULY

‘INTELLIGENT BUILDING SKIN’

Morpho Butterfly THE BUTTERFLY’S WING

NANO-STRUCTURE - Quantified interference & diffraction in butterfly scales

- Wavelength-selective & anisotropic light-diffusing through the structural layering of the scales - Anatomically diverse butterfly scales all produce structural colours by coherent scattering, creating a dazzling, vivid visual of colours

li-

e sibi l i s h tr w al po fo tic m co sthe n e ma th a u h wi g n di ding n sta poun r de ex n u

1. butterfly scale 2. scale nano-structure 3. nano-structure layering 4. light refraction / reflection diagram

1.

2.

3.

4.

light

.

“..

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streetscape diagrams

DAYLIGHT

INTENTIONS : 1. To provide a sustainable means of illumination for streetscapes at low light conditions.

2. Reinterprete the shading device, which acts to reduce excessive solar emittance while maintaining interior-exterior visibility.

green to blue & IR passed

red to yellow diffracted

solar cells

holographic film

Layering Relationship Diagram Applying the principles & structural layering of the butterfly’s nano-structure, 2 layers of holographic film are applied to refract specific light wavelengths & reflect them to the solar cells. This keeps cells near peak efficiency over longer periods of the day.

The angular surfaces, coated with reflective surfaces purpose to reflect excessive sunlight and redirect them to illuminate the streetscape

sunlight entering

red to yellow & IR passed

green to blue diffracted

THE CONCEPT : Ecomimicry - Mimicking the butterfly wing structure & it’s qualities of LIGHT REFLECTION

& ILLUMINATION

holographic film

sunlight entering

visible light diffracted

IR passed

R FO reflective glass

M

ired insp ides s a w es ning e. B s ope tructur focuse l a s n o o o o an it t ag hex rfly’s n light, ight to cy The e butte reflect of sunl efficien o n h by t ioning t lenghts sorbtio t b func le wave r-cell a a b usa ase sol e incr

phosphorescent

f a c a d e

f a c a d e

glass

IR- Iridescence

ht

ig dl

cte Creating an fle e r evenly illuminated urban street-scape

sustainable street illumination scheme

section

NIGHT Heavy reliance on artificial lighting

The ‘vertical density’ often casts the street in shadows, leading to a theatrical and often dark nature of the streetscape.

Hence, besides drawing inspiration from nature, we also explored the potential of harvesting nature’s gift of sunlight

sunlight entering

material layering diagram

DAY Insufficient daylight

colour diffraction diagram

ISSUE : Illuminating the urban streetscape

FLEXIBILITY OF APPLICATIONS

The panels are designed to be customised to adhere to various requirements.

Angles, aperture size, orientation & colour rendering can be suited individually to site/building requirements for more efficient sunlight reflection, interior penetration & colour coherence.

REFERENCES: 1. Prism Solar Technologies. (2009). Prisms Unique HPC Film. Retrieved October 1, 2009 from http://www.prismsolar.com/?p=hpcfilm 2. J. Horton. (2008). howstuffworks: Where do butterflies get their striking colors?. Retrieved September 5, 2009 from http://animals.howstuffworks.com/insects/butterfly-colors.htm/printable 3. Ask Nature Beta. (2009). Wing scales diffract and scatter light: Morpho Butterflies. Retrieved September 5, 2009 from http://asknature.org/strategy/1d00d97a206855365c038d57832ebafa 4. TAMPL. (2007). MicroScale Reflectance Spectrometer Theory. Retrieved September 5, 2009 from http://www.tufts.edu/as/tampl/projects/micro_rs/theory.html 5. J. Toon. (2006). Georgia Tech: Butterfly Wing is Template for Photonic Structures. Retrieved September 5, 2009 from h ttp://www.nano.gatech.edu/news/release.php?id=1215

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[Year 2 August 2008]

NIKE SPORTSWEAR INSTALLATION collaboration with Architect Lisa Foo and Fabian Tan Pavilion, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

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Together in collaboration, an art installation was created in conjunction with Nike’s new product launch. Mini rubber hand gloves were inflated and amalgamated to form the iconic, glowing NIKE swoosh.

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AARON LAU 5 HARCOURT STREET HAWTHORN EAST 3123 VIC, AUSTRALIA

P: +6430477850 E: aalau7690@gmail.com ayylau.tumblr.com

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