YEAR 4 OPTIONS STUDIO COMPILATION OF SELECTED WORKS
2020/2021 M.ARCH 1 STUDIO SHINYA OKUDA
RE-FOREST CITY
MASTERS DESIGN PROJECTS INTERESTS Masters Design Projects include those explored in two Options Design Research Studios (M.Arch 1), the Advanced Architecture Studio and the Thesis project in M.Arch 2. All studios may explore issues relevant to the interests of the Research Clusters, adjunct teachers and professors in practice. Students are encouraged to capitalise on faculty expertise in widening the scope of investigations which collectively strengthen the Thesis Project in M.Arch 2. Essential and Elective modules are useful in underpinning your Masters studio investigations. Although Options Design Research studios may be varied in content and method, students are advised to be selective and to use them as ‘learning runways’ to identify a Thesis topic and to apply accumulated knowledge there. The Advanced Architecture Studio preceding the Thesis may be used to explore thesis drivers in greater detail and focus. It is expected that the Thesis project will be the most comprehensive and extensive study of all the Masters Design Projects. _______________________________________________________________________________________
DESIGN AS INQUIRY Masters projects can be research investigations where design forms a principal mode of inquiry. Methods can be heuristic or empirical or in mixed modes of inquiry. There are a number of research methods in design investigations leading to different outcomes but they are by no means exhaustive: • textual/graphic analysis of theoretical concepts with investigations drawn from critical discourse using text references, works of art/representation • quantitative analysis to verify qualitative hypotheses with simulation, physical experiment, prototype testing and mixed methods • scenario-driven speculative design to suggest solutions to emergent need. The process in itself is a new way of seeing/thinking which generates many solutions. One version of a solution may be articulated spatially and in full materiality • new research knowledge is interpreted in architecture as a new way of thinking/making/ experiencing • existing practices, processes or existing technologies are applied to design and which produce ‘unprecedented’ outcomes
PROJECT ATTRIBUTES A good Masters project is one where: • the research process informs design strategy which can be followed through a coherent sequential process of explorations or iterations • the research generates an underlying order giving rise to a number of architectural or urban propositions • the research or issues engaged with, give rise to new solutions through design, some of which are singular, permutable or recombinant • it addresses the contextual specificities of site, material, spatial, culture and program and all of the above are communicated through architectural drawings, well-crafted models and annotations which curate a design process and outcome(s) that can be understood without a verbal presentation by the author Beyond a commitment to individual academic portfolios, Masters projects play an important role in characterising the discursive ethos of a design school. It is important that you do your best. _______________________________________________________________________________________
RESEARCH CLUSTERS RESEARCH FOCUS At DOA, our advanced research delves into critical issues of architecture today and tomorrow. In particular, we anticipate and observe new demands and novel forms of buildings, cities, environments, and nature that are emergingthroughout Asia and the equatorial region. DOA research clusters coalesce creative practice, technology, urbanism, landscape, preservation, and the specific expertise of our faculty members into a productive synergy and alignment between teaching and research. The following five clusters drive the M Arch I Design Research Studio Options sequence, the M Arch II Design Thesis and the graduate level elective offering across our Master of Architecture programme. These are nonetheless included in the BA Arch programme booklet so that students may understand the various research interests of their faculty. _______________________________________________________________________________________
I. RESEARCH BY DESIGN The Research by Design (RxD) cluster develops translational research approaches through creative practice. It emphasises the importance of rigorously engaging critical and creative practice in making, writing, and thinking in architecture. RxD strives for innovation and influence in the built environment through its research outcomes. To date, a number of these outcomes have won awards and made considerable impact. RxD focuses on design in Asia and around the equator, and on research into contemporary concerns as well as the identification of speculative future directions. Members work in a range of design modes from sole authorships to collaborative and interdisciplinary configurations. As a group, RxD leverages its combined creative expertise, teaching within design studios and graduate elective modules. Research outcomes include leading buildings, texts, exhibitions, installations, films, drawings, photographs, and object-making, alongside design monographs, edited volumes, and research papers. RxD’s commitment towards integrative and translational creative practices empowers design research with intellectual and critical bearings, for a discipline in transformation.
II. HISTORY, THEORY AND CRITICISM The History, Theory and Criticism cluster develops critical capacities to examine questions of built environmental production and consumption within the historical and contemporary milieu. Taking architecture and urbanism in Asia as a primary focus, members work in interdisciplinary and transnational modes. Our members conduct research into a wide range of topics against the context of colonial/postcolonial and modern/postmodern Asian contexts, teaching these with the aim of encouraging historical literacy and consciousness in students, to enable them to understand how the present is historically sedimented. Besides teaching, members also publish widely and in diverse forms, organise and participate in major conferences and workshops, curate key exhibitions, and advise both governmental and non-governmental organisations in related fields around the world.
III. TECHNOLOGIES The Technologies cluster investigates environmentally performative or sustainable building forms and systems, and generative-evaluative processes for designing liveable environments. It employs traditional and emerging technologies that contribute to a new understanding of the human ecosystem, and emerging computational methods and techniques for discovering the relationships betweenform and performance. Members investigate the relationship between human and natural landscapes, at every scale, from the building component scale to the urban scale. Special emphasis is placed on the examination of high-density Asian cities, and on application of design and building technologies in a tropical context.
IV. URBANISM The Urbanism cluster aims to contribute towards development of sustainable resilient models and innovative advanced urban strategies to cope with various environmental, social, economic and technological challenges facing Asian cities today and in the future. The starting point for this research is a comprehensive understanding of the complexity and distinctive characters of emerging urbanism in the region. Against this backdrop, members investigate emergent urban design issues related to community and participation; conservation and regeneration; ageing and healthcare; well-being and built form; modelling and big data; and resilience and informality. These issues are examined from multiple perspectives and through both inter-disciplinary and transdisciplinary collaborations, in order to question conventional norms and conceptions and establish new visions for a progressive and human-centric sustainable urban future.
V. LANDSCAPE STUDIES The Landscape Studies cluster undertakes research to generate new knowledge of landscapes as socio-ecological systems, and promotes the use of knowledge in governance systems and landscape design to improve the well-being of humans and enhance the ecological integrity of the environment. The geographic focus is primarily high-density urban regions in Asia; however members of the cluster also work in the transitional zones within the rural-urban continuum, where urban regions are expanding at a rapid rate and encroaching into rural landscapes. The overall research approach is both interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary. The cluster looks not only at advancing theoretical concepts and knowledge, but also applying the knowledge in practice and public policy, to shape the environment. Areas of research span a wide spectrum of the socioecological dimensions of landscape: from landscape science and landscape management, to design research and sociobehavioural studies.
STUDIO SHINYA OKUDA
RE-FOREST CITY Climate Departure The world climate is changing. The irreversible departure from the bounds of a country’s old climate has been coined as ‘Climate Departure’. Caused by the build-up of greenhouse emissions, climate departure poses a threat to not only biodiversity, territorial boundary between sea and land, but humans as well if left unattended to. Tropical climate zones, where Singapore is located, are projected to experience this impact the earliest. First, as a small, low-lying island-state, Singapore faces an existential threat from rising sea levels. Experts estimate that sea levels around Singapore could rise by up to 1m by the end of the century. Second, daily mean temperatures are projected to rise by 1.4 to 4.6°C towards the end of this century. Third, the contrast between the wet months (November to January) and dry months (February and June to September) are likely to become more pronounced. An increase in intense rainfall can lead to flash floods. Conversely, a lack of rainfall poses threats to our water supplies. In 2014, Singapore experienced a record dry spell of 27 days. The drier weather in 2015 and 2016 caused water levels at reservoir in Johor (which Singapore imports water from) to drop to a historic low (about 20% in October 2016). To remain resilient, Singapore need to be able to cope with the impact of changing weather patterns. At COP21 in 2015 in Paris, Singapore commits to reduce carbon emissions by 36% from 2005 level in next 15 years, as an initiative to mitigate the global warming. In alliance with this initiative, the NUS team for ArcDR3 challenges various factors affected by the Climate Departure, focusing on design and research efforts on investigating the relationship between environment, territory and architecture located in the wet tropical region of South-east Asia; our works are specifically focused on the interface between atmosphere and architecture, nature and
urbanism, water and landform. The ambition is to develop design strategies for architectural / urban forms and landscape organizations that are not in opposition to the environment – a fundamentally important shift in conceiving the built environment today. As such, the studio is to explore resilient symbiotic relationships between nature and urbanism. Re-Forest City Controlling climate, fresh air, shading, privacy, amenity, food and materials: it sounds like a list of essentials for urban habitat, but eventually these are list of functions that natural forest could provide for human-being sustainably. Challenges for urban habitat is that we’ve been aiming to supply all those essentials artificially, which impact to the natural environment and emit CO2 accumulatively, ultimately causes the global warming. As a consequence, our climate is departing from the historical patterns, which makes our urban habitat more vulnerable to the natural disasters. Primitive shape of architecture was started as a shed to protect human race from nature. Historically, mankind has been trying to conquer nature: 17th century Versailles palace or Central Park in Manhattan, those urban nature have been controlled and framed well. When our urbanism grows, sufficiently large enough to has its own ecosystem, our attitude towards nature changed: finding more symbiosis with nature or learning from nature in order to mitigate the issues of the highdensity urbanism like noise, heat, pollutions by green corridors, green facades, green roofing, so to speak. However, those current series of mitigation measures require substantial and frequent maintenance artificially. So, how to develop more resilient urban-nature symbiosis? If we could provide sufficient time and space, eventually forest may regrow by itself without any human interventions and maintenance. It may also recover its own
ecosystem naturally.
and
grow
biodiversity
within
In addition, forest is renewable, and it has the everlasting resilience powered by solar. According to the Miyawaki methods2, naturally regrown forest develops 10 times faster, 30 times higher and 100 times more biodiversity than conventional reforestation, which may effectively contribute to the carbon sequestration process. Shinya Okuda Associate Professor
SYMBIOSIS CITY ANG HUIYING BRYAN MAH MIRRAH NAJIHAH ONG TING FANG ANTHEA HARRY LAM
BOUNDARY DISPLACEMENT | Ang Hui Ying To facilitate a symbiotic relationship between man and nature, boundaries between spontaneous nature and structure high-density urban spaces have to be respected. While biodiversity has to be protected from the harsh urban environment of heavy traffic, usable spaces also have to be provided for at the existing street level to allow for human access.
This project, located at the periphery area of the decommissioned Tanjong Pagar Terminal, seeks to control the growth of nature with urbanism by displacing the boundary between man and nature. Horizontal displacement of urban activity occurs along the periphery of the site while vertical displacement occurs within the inner courts that serve as circulation nodes. Visual connection, from the existing street level to the elevated forest floor, provides for an intriguing and inviting experience for access to the re-forest city.
TRANSIENT COHABITATION | Bryan Mah The scheme of transcient cohabitation takes place within the forest, where the city is built to coexist with the forest. The scheme explores the scenario of wide scale reforestation in order to mitigate the climate crisis, where speculative forest-city architecture is developed, in order to meet our demands for city life and environmental needs. Recognising the unique vertical conditions and structure of the forest, buildings interweave between trees, where suitable programs are assigned at different levels.
BLURRING BOUNDARIES | Mirrah Najihah Contact with nature is inevitable on site. One nature is controlled while the other uncontrolled. The boundary between the controlled and uncontrolled system creates an opportunity of transition spaces that de-emphasizes a hard physical edge between human and uncontrolled nature and establishes a blurred threshold. Instead of high structured volumes of architectural insertion, the volumes dissolve into the surrounding. The geometry of the architecture merges with the natural surrounding. Reflecting the surrounding trees into its facade-less structure, it offers a range of experiences within the one open-plan volume.
The resulting free-forming space both blurs its edges between the numerous internal programes and the connection between inside and outside. The undulating roof structure with soil for planting is supported by 2 types of pillars dotted throughout. With differences in size, they reference tree trunks’ unpredictable nature, evoking the sense of wandering through an unknown forest. The roof slab also features voids allowing for trees to grow through, mimicking the forest environment and lighting conditions. A quality of nature is that it is governed by certain rules which at the same time we’re never really aware of.
IMMERSIVE RETREAT | Ong Ting Fang Anthea An eco-resort that minimises impact to the forest while bringing people into the uncontrolled nature to strengthen the resilience of the forest while attempting to increase acceptance of people towards nature. By protecting biodiversity and increasing cohabitation, this project fits into a larger master plan scheme of Urban-Nature Symbiosis to ensure Resilience. Creating a continuous, unimpeded stretch of nature that allows animals to roam and migrate freely, this strengthens biodiversity in our forests and in turn increasing carbon sequestration by trees, effectively helping in carbon absorption.
COASTAL PROTECTORS | Harry Lam With the aim of reforestation at the proposed site, In order to establish a forest on site, it is critical to provide some sort of coastal protection against the harsh elemental conditions at the periphery. The prevailing Southeast wind not only damages plantation by drying up the moisture, but they also cause the “sea salt spray effect” which is when the wind carries sea salt particle droplets from the sea to the inland. This causes negative effects as a build up of salt particles can cause soil infertility to the land, potentially harming the plantation and declining the health of the forest. The architectural proposal therefore will be situated at this coastal periphery of the site, to provide coastal protection that can aid the forest development. urban structures will be designed functioning as hotel accommodations, where the buildings will support both the human livibelity as well as providing the essential protection for the wellbeing of the forest.
SELF SUFFICIENT CITY SUNG JIAN WEI JOHN CHO BONGJUN LIN HAOZHEN MEGAN GWEE SU-LYN SARAH WONG SI MIN SENG PEI EN JOANNE
The Re-forest City is a pilot project that explores the concept of being fully self-sufficient witht he aim of beinga mdoel for resilience and sustainability, to be replicated in other parts of Singapore and even in other regional cities. The site consists of close-loop systems to achieve self-sufficiency in terms of food, water, renewable energy, logistical transport, construction materials and leisure amenities. These system of systems also seek to build resilience against changing circumstances like the effects of global warming. The water network acts as the backbone of the site. It is a vital element and node that supports the other layers like the timber production towers which are constructed around it for enhanced livability. Additionally, an underground logistical network is developed to support the operation of the site. By keeping major transportation modes underground, the ground level is freed of roads and offers more opportunities for green social spaces as well as biodiversity protection throughout the site. Urban farms and agroforestry support food security and solar balloon modules are placed strategically around the site to generate enough energy to power the activities on site.
Due to the complexity of the project, it is necessary to split it into three phases for systematic construction and integration of the various layers while ensuring livability, efficiency and flexibility on site during the process.
REVERSED FOREST | Sung Jian Wei John The underground project explores pockets of spaces under the forest floor where the roots grow in the opposite direction of the trees above hence the reversed forest. While trees need sunlight to grow, it also needs nutrients from the soil thus it can only grow as tall as the soil volume and depth. The design is mindful of this relationship between under and above ground, carefully fitting in useful programs that curates forest density while ensuring healthy spontaneous growth. Reversed forest acts as a cultural hub that houses a concert hall and exhibition space which doubles as a water storage area that builds on the robustness of the water system in the site. Logistics such as circulation, storage and M&E are incorporated underground to free up space for more trees for carbon sequestration and for light intensive activities such as food and timber production to fully utilize daylight above ground.
FOR RISK REDUCTION AND RESILIENCE (ArcDR3)
st
Reversed forest Logistics that support the site programs are pushed underground to free up space above for more trees for carbon sequestration and for light intensive activies such as food and timber production to fully utilize daylight. The project explores pockets of spaces under the forest
WATER SLOPE | Cho Bong Jun With climate change, rainfall is gradually increasing in tropical regions. In other words, how to use rainwater is an important factor. At the site, water is used for irrigation, log transport, and a recreational space for residents. The purpose of the design is to collect rainwater while continuously purifying the water in a natural way.
SPIRALING PLANTATION | Lin Haozhen Vertical plantation increases available land for plantation by 50%, leading to a shorter time span and resultant mix use of concrete and timber. Trees will be cut down at the plantation tower and sent to the ground level via a slide. They will then be transported to the central underground process factory via the water for production of Mass Engineered Timber (MET). MET will be distributed to the different parts of the site through an underground network.
SOCIAL WALKWAY | Megan Gwee Su-Lyn The spontaneous forest only grows on the periphery due to the “edge effect” - whereby trees are unable to grow densely near urban built up areas. However, this high density of wild forests makes their interiors inaccessible to humans. This social walkway will serve not only as a connecting element for all functions on site, but also a device to create a healthy human-forest interface, where humans and nature interact without disturbances. This is important for reducing stress levels associated with urbanised living.
Food Terrace | Sarah Wong Si Min Meat production accounts for 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and it is predicted that the global temperature will continue to rise without a shift in global meat and dairy consumption. Singapore presently imports 90% of its food, with the aim to increase local food production to 30% by 2030. This design aims to promote a plant based diet and strive for 100% fruit and vegetable production to cater to the dietary needs of the people on site, with surplus from food production to be exported across Singapore.
ENERGY CLOUD | Seng Pei En Joanne There is the present need to promote renewable energy as an alternative to dependence on fossil fuels, which are harmful to the environment and a finite resource. At least 288 gigawatts per year of renewable energy generation is required for the site to be carbon neutral, but there is limited land, and photovoltaic panels compete for roof space with plantations and food towers. Through this design, air space is tapped upon to free up ground and roof space, as the photovoltaic cells are fitted onto balloons. The photovoltaic cells harnest light from the sun for energy, as well as harnest heat from the sun to stay afloat.
YEAR 4 OPTIONS STUDIO COMPILATION OF SELECTED WORKS
2020/2021 M.ARCH 1 STUDIO SHINYA OKUDA
IMAGE CREDIT: LIN HAOZHEN