Delectable smell in-the-air A physical manifesto of eating and not doing anything else together Loh Kong Liang Mervin, ADS9
What is the Project?
7
Youth in Balaclava, an Emerging Subjectivity
9
Singapore, a city-state of rigidity governance
35
Singapore and her unconventional poetry readings
55
Delectable, Aura and Openness
61
Experimentation, Effects and Conditions in architectural drawings
87
Sketching the Delectable Architecture; Exploration of ideas with - Sketches
95
- Models
171
- Drawings
191
- Materiality
235
Biblography
252
The Delectable smell in-the-air Delectable smell in-the-air is a physical manifesto for the common people within the residential estate in Singapore, Toa Payoh. Occupying a singular large space of 80m by 90m, it could hold up to 1000 people eating and not doing anything else together. Within the city-state where daily routine is highly structured and unproductivity is criticised upon, the delectable is a new manifestation of a plinth within the estate that allows for individualist self-expression without restraint. As the expectation of society piles up on young Singaporeans, the social affirmation cracks as the domestic space is the only relief for these people. Youth in Balaclava is an emerging expression of counter-routine, a group of young people that rebels the normative conduct in Singaporean society. By casualising public spaces without any formal approval, YIB is about the freedom of choices and the subtle rebellion against the rigidity of governance within the city itself. The sense of unrestraint expression within the estate allows for counter-routine through the casualisation of the familiarity. The familiarities of the domestic spaces extend out to the estate in which the ‘Hawker Centre’ is integral to it, a public space in a form of an infrastructure for the common eating. These infrastructures integrate different cultural food under one roof, while taking no references from any cultural elements instead created a new urban typology itself. Taking what is Singaporean like the casual food that we consume and the common estate that we all live in, the projects look at the intricacies of the city and spatialised it to intensify the cultural aspects of being Singaporean. The Delectable is a playground of sensorial perceptions that works between the physiological, atmospheric and gastronomic senses of people. To emphasis on its seemly weird sense of familiarity within the estate, the direction of entry, sequence of observation and creation of smell composition within the architecture are chosen according to different impacts we would want Singaporean to experience – perceiving the hawker as a familiar setting interfacing with the estate. In order to retain the familiarity of the hawker centres, the ground level becomes the continuation of these hawker productions that allows for residents to enter from any side of the building - situated on the same plane as the rest of estate. The architecture then creates conditions that allows for the concentration of different air composition from the smells produced by the hawker centre. The smells then travel up through the columns that support the first level into the walls of the domes. These domes then release the air composition through emitters that allows intense concentration within the chambers of the domes, across different fields of the architecture. The roof then shows the design language of the architecture as a series of domes, spreading across the plinth as a field of smell emitting machines. As the domes segment changes with different height and size the different containment of air composition changes and so does physiological transformation in the occupants do. That will allow for different types of expression, activities, collectiveness, socialising and eventually not doing anything else at all across the field of the architecture. opposite: Organisation of smell, objects and elements within an open architectual floorplate
Youth in Balaclava a local collective in Singapore
They often do their photoshoots at public spaces around Singapore, in a way to occupy these public spaces with their rebellion through fashion. These occupation creates opportunity which opens up discussion when the collective does their weekly secret meet-ups with other ‘similar’ youths of Singapore
YIB 2015
YIB 2018
Subtle rebellion of the normative Youth in Balaclava is an 18 person like-minded and self-labelled anarchist collective, that rebels against the normative conduct in the Singaporean society through usage of different myriad forms like music, art and fashion. While each member oversees a particular area of operations within the collective, they remain a non-hierarchical and egalitarian bunch. Growing up in Singapore has conditioned the youths to study hard and pursue a highly elevated profession like lawyer and doctor, or risked getting frowned upon by the society. A typical expectation of the youths in Singapore is where the strict governance presumption of the perfect nuclear
family exploits the mind-set of the parents and onto the children. In order to oppose the social norm of expectations in upbringing and education, Youth in Balaclava began to design irregular capsule collections, writing their own music and churning out digital journals that are subtle counter-expectation against the society. That democratic ethos similarly shapes their creative output, which draws from a hotchpotch of street vignettes, musical references and internet culture.
YIB in their occupation of ‘UOB Plaza’ movement that subtly mingle around the office working class in their eccentric dressing pretending to be part of their spectrum. left: NEL line train to Ponggol right: Circle line Esplanade station opposite left: Underneath Kallang station tracks opposite right: Back alley of Chinatown
'Occupation' as an occupation Youth in Balaclava constantly occupies public spaces as a subtle counter-expectation which makes usage of their fragmented fashion as a way to resist against the formal society that the youths currently lived in. One of event in the form of occupation was a fashion shoot-like that the collective executed in UOB plaza (2016), a busy financial crossroad in central Singapore. On a busy mid-week lunch time, the collective simulate a photoshoot by setting up a studio-like environment. In a well-dressed environment of office workers moving around the plaza in a rigid objective manner the collective, in their eccentric dressing and out of place mannerism mingle within the working crowd. They started to act as formative as their counter-parts, while dressing in a way that is not normative in the office working setting of the plaza. The collective’s objective in this occupation is to rebel against how the Singaporean society has conformed to a certain act and dressing, living up to the expectation of the family and the government. That in turn displaces the sense of individuality and creative aspirations in order to be of value to the rigidity of the Singaporean expectations.
opposite top: YIB occupies UOB Plaza opposite bottom: YIB occupies Queenstown estate HDB roof
2017’s Honey Memory collection was presented at the rooftop of a industrial building in Ubi. Models were instagram-casted friends, who had to do their pre-show fittings at a nearby alley as the makeshift ‘backstage’
opposite top: YIB occupies Ubi Industrial estate rooftop opposite bottom: YIB Fashion show top: Fashionwalk show insta-cast models, friends of YIB bottom: YIB conversation with other youths in a secluded unoccupied catering factory
YIB staged fashion-shoot at different public space. a form of subtle occupation left: Keppel Bay park right: stairs in Myeondong opposite left: Paya Lebar redevelopment station (under-construction)
Appropriating un-used spaces In 2017 the collective held a fashion walk that invites spectrum of youths to young adults Singaporeans to partake in occupying a rooftop of an industrial building in a busy industrial estate area. Taking chairs and cups from the coffee-shop downstairs, the participants who were going to the fashion walk had to each bring their own seats and climb up to the roof themselves. In a way these ‘objects’ taken by the participants contributed to the unregulated movement of public properties for private usage. By taking over a public place like the rooftop without any form of formal approval, the notion that Youths in Balaclava is trying to create is about the freedom of choices and the subtle rebellion against the rigidity of governance within the city itself.
National Aerated Water Co. Ltd Singapore An abandoned factory of a former bottling factory, the former National Aerated Water Company located in central Singapore, it became the home that is occupied by Youths in Balaclava. The main building comprises a two-storey L-shaped structure facing Serangoon Road. Interesting features of the building includes the signage tower, a balcony with brick parapets, Art Deco timber transom panels and a concrete sun shading ledge that spirals out of a circular window. The unused building means that it is not seen from any prying eyes, or any form of security checks on the building itself. From the desolated building, YIB created a workspace that is uniquely for them, with different areas inside the building used for different forms of creation like fashion making, music making and social content building.
opposite: National Aerated Water building, an abandoned bottling factory top: 'American' ice cream soda bottom: Dry ginger ale
YIB constructing their spaces of production
Function and Collection Functioning as an independent, holistic eco-system, Youth in Balaclava is always on a look out for spaces of occupation which they can make use of themselves – as a way to resist against the formal society that the youths lived in currently. One of their collections highlights the inner struggles Singaporean men face when transitioning back to the society after National Service obligations, as well as offer an alternative outlook of life within this city. This disruption then becomes the genesis for designs in Lost in Transit, giving other like-minded youths the chance to wear this alternate perspective on their sleeves too.
Rite of passage - Haircut enlistment day for National Service in Singapore
National Service, a formed of 'force' collective living for male youths top: Recurit live in BMT, Tekong opposite left:Route march opposite right: Briefing in the forest
Post-military service transition The post-military service period for most young Singaporean men are a transition period when one move from a highly regimental routine to a freedom of time. On average each year there will be around 50,000 men who will be facing this transition period. It is the disruption of a very structured life, where the lack of prescription in the post-military moment becomes a period of uncertainty to these young men in the Singaporean society. There is a notion that after National Service, many of the men who gave 2 years to the government service do not know what to do after that. As they were 2 years behind many of the female counter-parts, some were left wondering if they should continue their studies, work or just do nothing. In a case of the Singaporean society, most employers would always prefer their female counter-parts for employment as they would have more experience within the working force over the men that served in the National Service.
top:'Chionging' together bottom: Outfield shellscrape digging for the night opposite top: Battalion preparing for a mission opposite bottom: Offshore landing mission
Freedom of choice There will always be a group people who will not know what to do after the National Service, and they will question the necessities of the 2 years given to the government. The question then comes in if there is a space for these people to come together collectively again like what they used to do during the service, and help each other out in order to move on within the society.
The unprepared will feel lost without a place in society, but the prepared will feel a sense of liberation unlike any other, where you can shake off the shackles of a rigid schedule and system of hierarchy that you’ve become accustomed to. opposite top and bottom and top: Singaporean men used reddit as a forum to ask what to do after national service
The proposal aims to reintroduce the post-military men to a freer routine of unstructured enjoyment into the society. These spaces could be a reminiscence of the collectiveness that habitualised within the National Service period, providing spaces for contemplation against the fluidity of enjoyment. The occupation of public spaces across the city-state then becomes temporal manifestation of spatial conditions that these men can partake in either collectively or individually.
1°17′N 103°50′E Singapore a city-state of rigidity governance
Rigidity ‘potemkin’ society Singapore is a city-state that functions on social rigidity system, a place where every day routine is highly structured and any motion that does not contribute to the daily workings of the city is strongly criticised upon. As the expectation of society piles up on young Singaporeans, the social affirmation begins to crack, as the domestic space becomes the only relief for these people. With the increased pressure that also comes from the family, the search for new public space extends out from the domestic realm, as these spaces becomes typologies for collective eating (which is the favourite pastime of all young Singaporeans) and not doing anything else together. The un-defining proposal of a daily routine throughout the day where moment of eating becomes a physical act of materialising time. These routine slowly assimilates the structured life of young Singaporeans open up a day of boundless activity.
opposite: Asian City of Tomorrow, an iniative proposed by SPUR on metabolist megastructure for Singapore which were rejected by the government as it was deem heretic and disconnected from urban planning of the government
Locations of the Hawker Centres in different areas of Singapore
Moving towards an anti-typological intervention The public spaces in Singapore exist in various typologies which defines the city-state in its South East Asian context. A compilations of various open spaces, semi-open spaces and air conditioned spaces which are unique to Singapore. Open spaces like a plaza within central district or ‘void deck’ below public housing are always accompanied by a certain level of shelters. Even if these shelters are a form of covering these ‘open spaces’, the spaces are still in definition by Singaporean, open spaces. Semi-open spaces would be spaces that are used in a form of eating or gathering for the people like the ‘Hawker Centres’. These ‘Hawker Centres’ are spaces that integrate different cultural food stores under one roof; where the seats are open for anyone and placed both under shelters and open areas. The main architectural language that was repeated in all the ‘Hawker Centres’ are the visual impact of neutrally designed spaces. These spaces do not take references from any cultural elements but instead, created a new urban language itself. The last would be air-conditioned spaces, which would be generally be the malls located in the shopping district as well as different satellite towns (residential estate areas). These air-conditioned areas are mostly used by local residents (if they are located in the satellite towns), which are enjoyed as they provide a space for rest
opposite top: Heartland mall, a row of shophouse-like shops leading towards the transport hub opposite bottom: Void desck under HDB blocks in Singapore
and interaction between other residents within the area. The very usage of these spaces is often characterised as a form of urban planning within the area, where the buildings are planned and constructed around the public spaces like an informed axis. With the development of technologies in architecture, spaces became much more uniform and consistent where the temperatures of ‘close’ spaces are general keep in a comfortable level of temperature. The architecture challenges these typologies through their usage, conditions and defragmentation of spatial position, the collective act of eating could become an extension of the domestic space – from home to dining to doing nothing. The first step is to look at the scale of these public spaces, specifically the ‘Hawker Centre’ where the collective eating within a semi-open space of cultural melting pot take place. How a larger building does then encompasses all these food stores enables different smell of spices and culture transverse throughout the architecture. That will be a study of how thermodynamic and aerodynamic take place within a closed, semi-open and open space. How could we then translate these dynamics into architectural information and re-invent what a ‘Hawker Centre’ could provide a space of collective eating and doing nothing.
Evolution of the Hawker Centre in Singapore top:Street vendors in Sago Street bottom: Street vendors moving into shophouses opposite top: Establishment of the first Hawker Centre infrastructure opposite bottom: Timber, a new defination of Hawker culture infrastructure
The residential estate of Toa Payoh and its hawker centres distribution across the area represented by the smell emitted from the infrastructure
A typical busy day in the heart of Singapore's food culture infrastructure, Hawker Centre
The neccesary typology studies in order to understand the complexity of hawker centers design as an infrastructure and a public space
Smelling the Hawker Centre The favourite past-time and cultural melting pot of the city-state, the ‘Hawker Centre’ played a role in provided a strange sense of eating together without ever knowing the companions you eat with. Within the mundane time of eating within the ‘Hawker Centre’, the loud noise coming from different stores as orders are announced and the bustling of people trying to get seats either before or after purchasing their food occupies the whole infrastructure. The subtlety of sharing the tables together becomes part of the eating culture in ‘Hawker Centre’ as the infrastructure becomes packed during rush hours while sharing the same tables for dining. The strangeness of being together and eating together extends out to the smell that traverses through the infrastructure. The distinct mixture of spices, cooking, ingredients and food guides Singaporean in finding their favourite store or their favourite dish. Since the houses in Singapore are culturally neutral designed, the kitchen becomes the congregation of cultures being preserved and educating the next generation through the process of cooking and consumption. But because of the highly slaving nature of Singaporeans, the process of cooking at home was seen as a tedious production which makes the ‘Hawker Centre’ a favourite infrastructure to be visited for all forms of dining. One then could boldly claim that because of the continuous production of time-valued lifestyle, the typological infrastructure which houses the production of eating was seen as an extension of the domestic space – where the preservation of culture was animated through the constant production of culturally distinct food in a culturally neutral environment.
opposite: Infusing the smell of the Hawker Centre into the Design Strategy, one could imagine the environment of the infrastructure through the strange mixture of smells emitting from the book.
A non-typological approach to eating and not doing anything else together
that becomes highly conditioned, these sequences in a variety of dynamic temperature, movement, sight, sound and height. 1. Occupying one large uninterrupted space around the urban context, the building goes as high as the central highway in Singapore, and as low as the basement shopping district that connects to the MRT.
2. The spaces will be bound by airflow, which will Through the re-invention of a new infrastructure suggest certain activities to take place within each that houses the production of eating; a direct influ- area. The architecture will depend on the smell of ence on a new way of looking at ‘Hawker Centre’ in spices that create physiological effects on the people Singapore, the project will propose a building that within. occupies a large continuous space which extends out around the urban context. The architecture will 3. The building will be as colourful as the spices house 1000 people to collectively eat and do not do- used in Singapore, excited with the sensory experiing anything else within the space. The proposal will ence of eating and smelling. be three levels high and three levels deep, a spread of continuous spatial connections from one level to the other. Distinctive architecture elements are designed and placed around the space that contribute and direct the aerodynamics within the area, crafting boundaries that are marked by these airflows. Contributing to the spatial organisation of the airflow are the thermodynamics of the area, which because of the difference in temperature allows for continuous airflow using air pressure and. It will be a space for the production of eating which contributes to both the sensorial smells and temperature within the building itself. These continuous flows of spaces and blurred boundaries are a reaction against the adamant structure of the Singapore through the un-defining nature of the building. Building up on a series of spaces
opposite: Central highway to cuts into the Marina Bay Sands and Helix bridge
Singapore and her unconventional poetry readings
The twin cinema is an invented poetic form that originated in Singapore. In its original form as developed by Yeow Kai Chai, the twin cinema consisted of two discrete columns of poetry. The columns were separate and did not read as a coherent line across both columns. Each individual line of a column contained imagery that could correlate or contrast to the opposing line of the other column. Its also a form of poetry that young Singaporeans usually used to express their desire to be free from the normative lifestyle and their struggles living in a Singaporean society
Delectable Aura & Openness
opposite: Resin cast with ink drips. The ink is drip in a grid manner accross the resin and using a hair-dryer, the blowing of the aerodynamic causes the ink to spread in a meandering state.
Identifying the smell through olfactory sensories that recalled memories of it, essentially giving a intangible sense a visual call for recognition top: Vials that contains distilled liquid from the spices, with chemical compounds that trigger certain physiological effects in human
Delectable smell in the air A playground of sensorial perceptions that works between the physiological, atmospheric and gastronomic, the spaces will be part of the construction of the unstructured/open routine in the openness of the architecture within Singapore. A precise conditioning of spaces that will trigger certain aspects of euphoria within the occupants and with their cumulative impact then allows the dopamine and other creative chemicals to excite the physiological changes in people. For example the usage of chilli in Sambal Nasi Lemak which itself contains capsaicinoids, a binding agent to the receptor in the lining of the mouth. These receptors register the pain from the heat which gives the effect of a burning feeling. Inducing such pain cause the body to release endorphins which are the body’s natural painkillers. That chemical that was release gives a feeling of happiness and euphoria to a person in which it starts to create a pseudo-masochistic effect on the person – the effect of wanting more of these burning sensation in although to achieve the ecstatic feeling of euphoria. What the architecture is looking to interact which is these series of triggering smells, affecting the occupants’ physiological sensation which triggers different levels of euphoria, exhilaration, creativity and relaxation. These physiological changes in people will then start to break down the structured life of Singaporeans, a defragmentation of their rigid life in the society as they eat and not doing anything else together.
Delirious New York: Radio City Music Hall Rem Koolhaas The creativity of atomospheric interference in architecture and the radical understanding of spaces within theatrical excitment changes.
Sambal Nasi Lemak 3
Alliin C6H11NO3S
3
Capsaicin C18H29NO3 (fresh)
15
Capsaicin C18H29NO3 (dried)
20 g
Domoic Acid C15H21NO6
100 ml Oil 1 Shallot(s) 125 ml Water 1 tbsp Coconut milk 1 tsp
Tartaric acid C4H6O6
agar Salt agar Sugar
The capsaicinoids in chilli bind to a receptor in the lining of the mouth. This is the same receptor that registers pain from heat, thus the effect is a burning feeling. This is a result of the flow of calcium ions from one cell to the next. The pungent molecule has an electron poor area, which is attracted to the electron rich area on the receptor protein. The pain caused by this leads to the release of endorphins, the body's natural painkillers. These give a feeling of happiness and well-being.
Hae Mee Tung 5
Alliin C6H11NO3S
5
Capsaicin C18H29NO3 (fresh)
1
Illicium verum Anethole ‎C10H12O
2 lbs
Prawn heads and shells
3 lbs
Pork ribs
800 ml Water 2 bunch Menthone C10H18O 1 tsp
Tartaric acid C4H6O6
1 tsp
White peppercorns / fish sauce / soy sauce / dark soy sauce
agar Salt agar x2 Sugar
Digesting mint stimulates the brain by improving memory and increasing alertness while helping it relax. Mint significantly increases oxygen saturation and blood pressure, which results in physiological arousal. Blood brings oxygen to your brain, so if mint increases the amount of oxygen in your blood and then increases your blood pressure, more oxygen travels to your brain. The more oxygen available to your brain, the better your concentration and focus.
Rendang 12
Alliin C6H11NO3S
20
Capsaicin C18H29NO3 (fresh)
10
Illicium verum Anethole C10H12O
50g
Curcuminoid C21H20O6
3 lbs
Beef
50g
Ginger / Galangal
800 ml water 600g
coconut milk
1 tsp
Tartaric acid C4H6O6
4 bunch Lemongrass / Kaffir lime leaves 1 pc
Asam Keping
agar salt agar x2 sugar
People who took curcumin also had lower levels of beta-amyloid and tau in the hypothalamus and amygdala brain regions, which are regions that play key roles in memory and emotion. Inhaling curcumin will induce a certain level of hallucination that heighten the sense of happiness which is amplified by the indigestion of it.
Creating the Aura Using thermal polarisation in the space, which generates a certain convective movement of air helps to define different zones with different temperature. The difference in temperature, in time of the day, in the levelness of the floor and in the smell that transverse through the spaces are translated into architectural languages that concretes the intangibilities. Using different temperatures within the space is a way to help diversity to the relation that the body maintains with the space, with its temperature, to allow movement within the space through the day from eat to doing nothing and to sleep. Allowing a certain thermo and aerodynamic to take place in the space leads to certain spatial organisation that could be created out of the movement of air and temperature, which then suggests different activities to take place. Smell is produced by one or several evaporative chemical compounds, which generally have very low density. The auras that the smell creates are definition of what each unique tie to a certain element that we perceive. In the body, some TRP channels are thought to behave like microscopic thermometers. Using spices that are commonly used in dishes found in Singapore, we can activate certain physiological reaction through the chemical released by these spices. Smell that is release within the building either through the spices that emanate from the cooking of the food or the air circulation which contains chemicals that incite euphoric mood and hyper-receptive to the surroundings, traversing using
opposite top: Philippe Rahm architects and their study of how convection in thermodynamics create a mini gulfstream that in turn could be used as a process of spatial designing opposite bottom: Kate Mclean uses liquid taken from Canterbury to create a sensorial vapour which comes from the summer in Canterbury
aerodynamics within the architecture itself will start to form spaces. The usage of spaces and elements elevated these particular dishes and their smell to different parts of the building. The triggering effects from these chemical compounds of the spices forms boundaries which enables a series of organisational spaces to be form, using people who are attracted by these exhilarating influence of smells. Architectural elements will be part of the directive intervention to allow these smells to traverse, trigger and enhances in these organised spaces. Making use of the atmospheric conditions of the architecture, these smells are constantly moving within an area or between different areas, creating a spatial dynamics of physiological reactions through the sensorial experience of the olfactory epithelium of the inhabitants. The habitualisation of these people occupies spaces what makes that experience euphoria and eventually settle to do nothing and rest within these areas.
Futurist Cookbook Filippo Tommaso Marinetti The manifesto, a radical way of eating. The creation of a new innovative way to enjoy dining in a complete broken down discourse which is aura, environment and architecture.
Open architecture, Open routine The sensorial perceptions could in a way stimulate the young Singaporeans within the space, a subtle reaction that creates opportunity for the body to do nothing. In today’s society we are all at risk of information overload. The introspection and contemplation have become lost arts as the temptation to do what is to be expected is often too great to resist. The human brain only weights 3% of the total body weight but uses 20% of the energy expended each day, human desires to eat and rest; to be free out of worry, becomes the cognitive load of people. These spaces then provide this desire, a form of rest and doing nothing for the rest of the day. Openness in the project is then constructed through the unstructured/open routine that the young Singaporean will experience and do within the space, and the public spaces that is created for them to enjoyment these moments of not doing anything together out in the open. The signs of not to do thing guided, not to be pressured by the society which are uncommon in Singaporean society becomes a celebrated notion of which is open to all to see and observe – and eventually partake together.
opposite: Kate Mclean map a series of diagrams using smells associated wth colours in order to map different typologies of smell around Singapore Beef Rendang curry, a curry unique to South East Asian food culture and loved by many Singaporeans. The strong spices used in the dish said to elevate euphoric compounds in the brain in craving for more – like a drug addiction
Experimentation & Representation
opposite: Resin cast with plaster and ink drip. The plaster is to simulate spaces where activities takes place and ink drops are where the aerodynamics of smell traverse through
An architectural way to read physiological effects Are there then certain conditions in the city, in the way the ‘Hawker Centre’ are leaning towards a form of rigidity that the project can react against to as an anti-typological reading? This will lead to the creation of innovative way of eating and not doing anything together – in a public space which becomes an extension of the domestic realm. The research, drawings, experimental models and studies of information will help to form an architectural project that will create a playground of these sensorial information, breaking down the rigidity of the Singaporean society into a unstructured/open routine space. 1. A series of exploration models/fact sheet/research that deals with sensorial perception which are namely: Physiological functions, atmospheric functions in the urban scale, gastronomic functions in South East Asian dishes and physiological functions that takes in these elements. 2. A series of large-scale line drawings that trace the connections of these ‘Hawker Centre’ typologies across the city-state. 3. A series of line drawings that explores the urban environment that contributes to the sensorial perceptions. 4. A series of line drawings that translate these intangible sensorial perceptions into architectural representations and information that can be shown. 5. A series of scaled models to perform these sensorial perceptions in reality, or at least as speculative.
opposite: Camilo Golgi accurate drawing of neurons that reacts against each other through the olfactory sensories
opposite: Golgi's drawing uses the technique of silver dying to map out neuron signals top: Golgi's drawing of the anatomy of nerve signals in the olfactory bulb
Philippe Rahm digestable gulfstream, a analysis of temperature difference. Architecture should no longer builds spaces, but rather create temperatures and atmospheres.
opposite: Philippe Rahm's manifestation of the Digestible Gulf Stream, an archtiecture reaction using meteorology and gastronomy as a design methodology. top: The concept of thermal comfort depends not only on external temperature, but also on clothing, the physical activity of those who live in the space and their diet.
Sketching the Delectable Architecture Exploration of ideas with sketches
Sketching the Delectable Architecture Exploration of ideas with Models
Layer 1 - Denser smell
both: Resin cast with plaster elements, string and ink as part of the study/experimental model on various physical dynamics Using model as a way to intuitively organise spaces around experimentation of airflow
Layer 2 - Lighter smell
Layer 3 - Open smell
Layer 4 - Organised spaces
Tracing the model into architectural drawings that performs the movement of aerodynamics and thermodynamics in line drawings
Experiementatioon with models that could capture the aerodynamics of wind path that carries the smell throughout the architecture (opposite), as well as emitting a series of complicated smell that allows for certain physiological and gastronomic changes (top)
opposite and top: Using smoke to capture aerodynamic flow within the model as a first step to materialise the study of airflow in architectural elements
A series of image capturing out the smoke is moving within the model as a way to simulate smell movement across the field
The model simulate the idea of smoke density moving down the field of bowls like a waterfall incense. The idea which the density of smell could be traversing across the building
The design of the dome started off with intuitive construction of the dome model through plaster
Using 3d printed clay, the model attempts to simulate its actual construction through physical modelling of the actual architecture
Other explorations of model includes 3d pinting as well as laser-cut to find a way to simulate lightness in the architecture
Sketching the Delectable Architecture Exploration of ideas with Drawings
Rigorous design and iterations of the domes as a design language
Particle simulation using the domes as a form to test how smells are distributed across the form over a period of time
A sketch showing how a series of domes can be combined together
Combining both the form and the particle simulation together
Part section plan of how the different domes are joined together maintaining the different dome entities externally but a open interior space
Using the idea of the terraces to spatial oraganised the plan as a series of hotspots for intense concentration of air composition within the domes
Development of the section of domes
A study of how the floor plates could enhance the diffusion of the smell
Studying on how activities might take place in a part segment of the domes
Sketching the Delectable Architecture Exploration of ideas with Materiality
Materiality as a Brick The interior of the domes can be lined with brickworks as a construction methodology as well as a sensorial materiality as the domes are built up in the architecture. The brickworks creates a tactile ehancement to the spatial collection of air composition as the smells are soak over time into the brick works, essentially becoming a wall of smell composition over time.
opposite: Mario Botta's Cathedral of the Resurrection top: Mario Botta's Cymbalista Synagogue
Materiality as a Concrete The interior of the domes are covered in concrete screed to provide a clean emission walls for the emitters to cover the domes with air composition. As the walls are smooth from the concrete screed, the smell that stains on the wall will flow down the screed essential creating a wall of smell.
opposite and top: Ryue Nishizawa's Teshima Museum
Materiality as a Ceramic The interior of the domes are lined with ceramic tiles that are smooth and provides a clean surface for the smell composition stains that will be on the wall, making it easier to clean over time. In such domes, the space is suited for much more intensed air composition as the space is clean from complex smell stains.
opposite: Dome of the Rock top: San Mateo Church
Materiality as a Terracotta The external of the domes will assembled by a series of terracotta tiles, that are interlocked to protect the interior from the environment. As the architecture ages, these tiles will take upon a smiliar aged look as the rest of the estate.
opposite: Assemble's Yardhouse top: Ceramic construction as a facade for the Yardhouse
Bibliography Alice P. Julier. 'Eating Together', 2013 Gaye Chan, Nandita Sharma. 'Constituent Imagination', Militant Investigations collective theorization, Eating in Public, pg. 180, 2007 Guillermo Lopez, Anna Puigjaner. 'AA Files 76', Home, pg. 92-94, 2018 Marinetti. 'Futurist Cookbook', 1989 Pier Vittorio Aureli, Maria Guidici. 'Log38', Familiar Horror: Toward a Critique of Domestic Space, pg. 105-129, 2016 Rahm Philippe. 'Decosterd & Rahm: Distorsions: Architecture 2000-2005', 2005 Rem Koolhaas. 'Delirious New York', Radio City Music Hall, pg.208 , 1978 Rem Koolhaas. 'S,M,L,XL', Singapore Songlines, 1995 Stavros Stavrides. 'Common space the city as commons', 2016 Walter Benjamin, 'The work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction', 1935