Hot Air: The Equatorial City and the Architecture of Atmosphere, Vol 1

HOT AIR: THE EQUATORIAL CITY & THE ARCHITECTURE OF ATMOSPHERE

Preface:

This volume is the product of the intensive study of two mid-sized Indonesian cities, Palembang and Semarang. The relationship of equatorial cities like these to their climate and territory becomes an increasing imperative in the face of climate change and great population growth. The studio is interested in exploring how hot and wet atmospheres along the equator that can be found in these cities can be researched, documented and translated into architecture and urbanism, that has thus far been overlooked by traditional representation techniques. Atmosphere, then, is understood as the layer of air that permeates through the city, binding it and its architecture together. Three features guide the research and subsequent design in the studio: saturated urbanisms, thick envelopes and heavy roofs. Through travel, photography, weather data, and explorations of novel representation techniques, atmosphere is positioned as a climatic and cultural medium that impacts both the aggregation of buildings and the architectural envelopes simultaneously. The research compiled in this volume has then been translated into urban and architectural form. These student design projects by the studio have been compiled in the booklets that accompany this volume.

Tropical Catalogue

Pasar Johar

Pasar 16 Ilir

Pasar Cinde

Sequis Center

Tower Wisma Dharmala

Kebayoran Baru

Pasar Cinde

Semarang, Indonesia

2°58’49.0”S, 104°45’18.9”E

When we were in Palembang, we had the intention to drive past the Pasar in our Grab, in order to catch a glimpse of what remains of Cinde. Just getting there takes a while, as the Grab steadily squeezes through the congestion around the Pasar. Through the tinted window of the crowded car, we see the few lonely columns and the debris around it. In a moment, we have all passed by the broken building, wondering how the strange fragment of the building will be reappropriated.

It was built in 1957 by the assistant of the famous Dutch architect Thomas Karsten, Abikusno Tjokrosuyoso. Apart from being a market, Cinde Market was built as a multi-racial gathering and mingling space for the different ethnic groups in Palembang. It is the embodiment of the changing market and trade concept in Palembang over the years. Its rich history of 60 years and unique building design gives it the status of a cultural heritage building. With its distinctive architectural features, Pasar Cinde has become a symbol in the minds and lives of the locals. Slated for demolition in 2017, it will be replaced by a high-end concept shopping mall, Aldiron Plaza, replete with air-conditioning, condo-hotel, and . To preserve the esteemed building’s heritage and placate the angry, protesting masses, a ring of Karsten columns will encircle the Plaza’s perimeter. The Plaza is estimated to be completed in 2019.

Pasar Cinde has a clear winner in the struggle between the government’s plans for the city’s development and the people’s desire for the pasar to be preserved, its fate decided. It is a definitive symbol of progressivism and modernity that has a significant slant towards temperate sensibilities.

Pasar 16 Ilir

Palembang, Indonesia

2°59’21.6”S, 104°45’49.2”E

While the building that houses the market today is fairly new, the Pasar is one of the oldest and busiest markets in Palembang which has existed since early 19th Century. Kajang boats carry produce and daily necessities for trade from upriver to the Pasar. Pasar 16 Ilir, although identified as the distinctive six-storey building along the river and beside the Ampera bridge, is in fact the entire district, with many temporary kiosks set up along streets and the entirety is understood as a single pasar. There are rumors of its future developments following in the footsteps of Pasar Cinde, and resident shop owners who are worried that they will be evicted have begun protesting since early 2016.

At present, Pasar 16 Ilir had been experiencing power struggles between 2 main management parties, Gandha Tahta Prima (GTP), a private third party market manager, and Perusahaan Daerah (PD), a governmental regional market company. Because of the stubbornness of both companies who believe that they still owned the market, traders and buyers have to ultimately pay management levies to both parties. In the midst of the power struggle between 2 management companies, it is the traders and shop owners who take the brunt of it all. They who have so much at stake have in fact the least say in the management of the market.

The fate of Pasar 16 Ilir remains ambiguous, and may also be a site to be converted to yet another air-con filled concrete box as Palembang strives to define a language of modernization and development to keep pace with the rest of the world.

Pasar Johar

Semarang, Indonesia

6°58’18.1”S, 110°25’27.1”E

Semarang is a city of trade and markets. Alongside a network of other markets, the city holds well established links to its greater hinterland, and hence, becomes a canvas to consolidate goods, resources and facilitate capital flow within and out of the city.

Historically, this is reflected through the diaspora of the Chinese trading populace in Chinatown and the rampant existence of markets throughout the city. The definitive spatial condition specific to Semarang would be the market. The vicinity of Pasar Johar reveals itself as a mosaic of retail and market stalls spread over and manifest through shophouse typologies, shopping centres and street carts.

With this lens, we have decided to take up the trajectory of appropriating the market as a frame for our architectural propositions. We locate our site on the empty plot of land beside the existing Pasar Johar, built by Karsten in 1933, when Semarang was under the Dutch colonial rule. Flanked between Chinatown and adjacent to the old town, the vacant site once accommodated Pasar Yaik, previously a part of the dense conglomerate of Pasars encircling Pasar Johar.

Pasar Yaik was realised in 1950 as a solution to the overflowing vendors from the congested Pasar Johar. Situated atop the Alun-Alun, an important makeup of the traditional javanese city, the network of pasars drew many buyers from in and around the city.

The rampant fire on 9th May 2015 which reduced Pasar Johar down to its bare structure, forced the relocation of the stalls to Relokasi, a 25-min car ride to the south-east of the Pasar. While tenants of Pasar Yaik were assigned to Masjid Agung Semarang, 550m away from Relokasi.

Tower Wisma Dharmala

Courtesy of Shawn Tan

Travel Atlas

Atlas of Tools

Itinerary: Palembang

DAY 00 - SUN 28 JAN

15:10

19:00

Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport

Check in to Airbnb, Jalan Sikatan

Dinner at River Side Restoran

Retire at Airbnb

DAY 01 - MON 29 JAN

Breakfast at Bakmie Aloi

Stadion Gelora Swirijaya and surrounding area (p. XX)

Drop off to walk across Ampera Bridge

Ampera Bridge (p. XX)

Pasar 16 Ilir (p. XX)

Museum Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II (p. XX)

Mie Celor

Perum Perumnas Palembang

Drive past Rumah Susun Palembang (public housing area)

Masjid Agung Palembang (p. XX)

Monpera

Drive past Pasar Cinde and surrounding area

Meeting with Prof Johannes Adiyanto at Aristo Hotel

Dinner at Waroeng Kita, Palembang Icon Mall

Retire at Airbnb

DAY 02 - TUES 30 JAN

Breakfast at Dunkin Donuts, met Pak Immanuel

Depart from Jetty (p. XX), travel along North bank

To Pulau Kemaro (p. XX)

Depart from Jetty, travel along South bank

Lunch at Pagi Sore

Kampung Wisata Al Munawar

Kampung Kapitan, met Aji & Adam

Chatime, dinner at Estella

Retire at Airbnb

DAY 03 - WEDS 31 JAN

Telkomsel to buy SIM cards

Breakfast at Martabak Har, conversations with Betty & Nanda

Breakfast at Dapoer Kangen Vegetarian

Currency exchange at OCBC bank

GoJek Martabak Manis at Airbnb

Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport

Itinerary: Semarang

DAY 03 - WEDS 31 JAN

Semarang Airport

Retire at Ibis Budget

DAY 04 - THURS 1 FEB

Blenduk Protestant Church

Jiwasarya Building

Lunch at Spiegel

Cigarette Factory

Tawang Train Station

Johar Trade Mall

Pasar Johar

Chinatown Temple

Ibis Budget

Dinner at Koeno Koeni Cafe Gallery

Drinks at Sakapatat Beer Garden & Resto

Retire at Ibis Budget

Kampung Pelangi Kalisari

Kampung Kinteland

Wonodri

Taman Gajahmungkur

Lunch at Ayam Bakar Primarasa

Pasar Jatingaleh

Pasar Randusari

Relokasi

Ibis Budget

Paragon

Dinner at Kedai Beringin

Ibis Budget

Drinks at Spiegel

Retire at Ibis Budget

Borobudur

Ibis Budget

Dinner at Paragon

Drinks at Sakapatat Beer Garden & Resto

Retire at Ibis Budget

Paragon

Semarang Airport

Documenting Atmospheres

The Equality of Deep Elevation & The Big Roof

Palembang, Indonesia 2°59’17.0”S, 104°45’39.6”E

Through our research and travel in Palembang, the city is understood as a battlefield, where different agents in the course of its history have contested the right to the city. Three chapters can generally be said to exemplify this struggle: first, as the capital of the Srivijayan Empire; second, as a colony of both Eastern and Western empires; third, the post-colonial, modern era of today.

In the first chapter, the vision of the Srivijayan Empire helped to put Palembang on the map. Positioned along a major waterway, the Musi River, and far enough inland to be sheltered from storms and attacks, Palembang was apt to become a midway point between other major trading ports. As such, its origins can be owed to its strategic geographic location, making it a valuable port city that connects Southeast Asia to India and China in the Srivijayan period.

Subsequently, with its advantageous location and lands rich with resources, the city was highly contested between the Dutch, British and various sultanates. Evident from historical maps, resource extraction of rubber, coal and oil in the colony during this period escalated and kickstarted the development of rudimentary transport systems into the hinterland from her coast. The urban fabric began to shift inland, in line with the sensibilities of her colonial masters.

In independent, modern Palembang today, the contestation in the city is no longer about its strategic location nor necessarily about resource extraction. This corresponds to the decreasing reliance on the Musi River for trade and survival as well as the shift in regulatory bodies of its major industries in coal and oil to the state. What, then, is being contested today? Just an hour’s flight away, both Palembang and Singapore were busy ports a few decades ago. Today, it seems Palembang has failed to keep pace in terms of its development and of staying relevant in the global scene. Yet, could it be that we perceive this so-called ‘failure’ due to our own bias? Perhaps a redefinition of the language of modernization and development that is appropriate for Palembang is in order - one that is geared towards its tropical, South-East Asian heritage.

The Big Roof

Semarang, Indonesia

7°00’21.7”S, 110°26’14.6”E

In just a little over 2 and a half hours by plane from where we are now lies the city of Semarang. The close proximity is made even more accessible by the 8 direct flights departing weekly from Singapore to Semarang.

The port city locates itself along the mid-northern region of Javanese hinterland, 1177.2 km in the south-east direction from Singapore. An estimated 1.8 million inhabitants are spread across the 373 sqm political boundary.

In between islands of colonial planning efforts that straddles through this terrain, the belly of the city grew through a trend that followed the forces of the market economy. In the heart of city, central government administrations, centralised finance and academic institutions co-exist beside clusters of kampungs and shophouses.

Semarang is a city with some pretty big roofs. The formal morphology of the city comprises of the field of desakota that bleeds out into the distance with islands of exception. Most of which are pitched, while some are flat. Perhaps, arguably, the most seminal roof within Semarang is that of Pasar Johar. An integral part of the city’s formation in its early years, the pasar is testament to Thomas Karsten’s legacy of built works within the city and perhaps, most indicative of the relationship between the people and the colonial past.

Conversations

Professor Johannes Widodo Professor Johannes Ariyanto

First Impressions:

In Conversation with Professor Johannes Widodo

Pre-trip, we arranged for a short meeting with Johannes to find out more about his thoughts on our impetus to go, the direction of our itinerary and learn some pre-emptive local wisdom before our departure to Indonesia. We met at his office full - in the presence of many other Southeast Asian statues deities around us, we begin our conversation..

JW: Does it have to be around South East Asia?

ZA: The research actually revolves around the equator and the tropical belt.

JW: So there is a possibility to even consider Angola, Mozambique and even Nairobi. Uganda and even Latin America. Ok so its closer to Singapore right?

ZA: Yes, indeed.

JW: Of course you can have the choice of Indonesia Malaysia Singapore and 10 ASEAN Countries. Because you have to go there and you have to see it. You couldn’t possibly just imagine it. Going into Palembang, I can give all the contacts over there, no issue.

KL: Perhaps it could have something to do with the history of the place itself, where these specific regions were colonised.

JW: This is an architectural question, we are not dealing with something that is strictly cultural as such. It is also about modernity, not so much about dealing with something ancient. Of course we can learn from the Vernacular Architecture.

KL: Maybe I was alluding more towards Thomas Karsten’s legacy during the colonial era.

JW: Even then, the era he was building in was already leaning towards the ideals of modernism in a period of the modern movement, focusing on modernity. Colonialism at that

time was much about control - things like the military fort, european typology, all fall within the idea of being forced into a tropical landscape. I wrote an article about the evolution of tropicality in Indonesia. Let me try to find it..

(rummaging through stacks of paper trying to locate a booklet)

JW: Basically I am saying that there are several steps to development of tropical architecture in the colonial and modernist context in Asia. First is, transplantation. The West forcibly imposes the four-season building typology onto the tropical landscape. Second is, adaptation. The buildings begin to adapt into this new landscape. An example being the four-season building typology typically has a big window to allow sunlight in Europe, so the eaves or the roof is not as important. It really is about the architecture of the body rather than the architecture of the roof. The wall is very thick.

ZA: It seems in the tropics it is more about the horizontal planes as opposed to the vertical walls.

JW: Yes if you look at the vernacular tropical house, the wall is actually breathing at the very wide eaves - like a hat, to protect it from the sun, protect it from the rain. In Asia, the tropical region to be specific, it relates more to the architecture of the roof than the architecture of the body. Cross ventilation, smaller windows, screens, all become part of the architectural vocabulary of the tropical house.

JW: The third stage of the European imposition on the tropical landscape is Hybridization. Therefore the roof becomes higher, more volume, more ventilation on the floor level. Cool air remains on the ground while the warm air rises up through the volume of the space. They also begin to mimic the spatial qualities of the stilt house typology by raising the floor above the ground due to flood, wet soil and space under the floor. A prime example of this is the Supreme Court Building here in Singapore, while it looks like a modern colonial building, the building method and its groundwork was done very much in the way houses were built in the tropics, elevated off the ground by stilts. Because it was built on reclaimed land, the area would always be wet. In the olden days, the Padang in front of the Supreme Court would always flood. Secondly, they created a natural ventilation from the basement to under the floor.The ventilation strategy is quite amazing through the section.They have a bench in the middle and the they have these ventilation holes which allow cool air to move into the middle of the dome. The top of the dome is like creating a stack effect, so it makes it very tropical. The building is breathing. You have large light coming in but it is also roof. And the wall is only half wall, that the air is going like this (gestures hand towards an upward motion). Basically, design is driven by climate. And then after these adaptations are hybridization, which begin to borrow some of the form from the traditional form like the temples or traditional architecture. It has become hybridized with different components together.

ZA: In a way, we also ran into the style of the Jengki architecture. We were wondering how and where it fits on the timeline of the tropical discourse.

JW: Jengki happened during the early years of Cold war. After the second world war, there was a conflict between the communist and the capitalist - basically America and Russia. Russia tried to expand to China and eventually to South East Asia. America on the other hand was interested in the domino theory, if one place of stronghold falls the rest will follow. Therefore America created SEATO (Southeast Asia Treaty Organisation) and the European counterpart of that was NATO. In South East Asia during that period was a hot war instead of the cold war, with the Vietnam war and the guerilla fighting in South East Asia from the communist. Interestingly at that time, the rhetoric of the post-independence Indonesia and even India was that of an anti-imperialist stand. From there Sukarno, with

many of his politician friends set up the Bandung conference in 1955, 1956 which is very in a way, anti colonialist. At that time the British were trying to set up an independent Malaya. Sukarno accused that of an act of neo-colonialism. Therefore, Sukarno sent Marines to Singapore to bomb certain places of interest, MacDonald House, Katong Park, a lot of people died as result. Two of them were captured by Malayan police and hung at the Padang. So there was a war between Indonesia and Singapore. Interestingly, within this kind of context, there were alot of young architects from Indonesia and Malaysia that were sent by the government to study in Europe. In Europe, modernism was still trending. Some went to Russia, Bulgaria and Norway where there was the revival of constructivist-slanted elements. It’s almost like a neo-art deco, with less ornament, light structure made out of light concrete mixed with brick.

In Hollywood, another cultural trend was happening. Movies like Flash Gordon and Batman were being produced. One of the movies that were crucial was this movie called rebel without a cause. The movie was about the context of the war and all the madness in the world, and they were trying to portray something new by rebelling against the establishment. Long hair, blue jeans, flared up. So it had all this rock and roll elements and at that time Lee Kuan Yew and Sukarno were against it, deeming it threatening to tradition. At that time if you had long hair and were coming into Changi Airport, you would be forced to cut your hair. It’s a conflict between this. The architects that were coming back to South East Asia at that time, quietly, using the kind of knowledge of this new culture that they had, produced those kind of buildings representing the high tech elements that were prevalent in Hollywood movies at that time hence the term Yankee.

Jengki was the term used for American soldiers that were stationed in Indonesia at that time. The term however could not be used openly, as Sukarno was anti- America, or anti-Imperialist. This is the interesting thing about that time, there are all these ideals that are coming out. Something new has come out of the war, we don’t want anymore war. Let’s have a very playful of style of architecture with playful forms. Even down to the bicycles for the female model. The ones that were curved in its frame, so they come out with the Jengki style.

ZA: In a way, it also sounds like it correlates to the scale of the projects. I realised that most of the Jengki architecture are smaller scale projects. You wouldn’t have a cultural institution or government building in the style of Jengki architecture.

JW: This style of architecture was later adopted by the government. Because of the economic situation, the buildings are cheap to build. You wouldn’t have to build a very big structure, at most the buildings go up three to four storeys high.

ZA: So somehow, it managed to infiltrate and the government adopted Jengki style anyway in the end.

JW: But in a way, its something like our Tiong Bahru flats, the SIT ones. Without much of the slanted elements and not so much of the ornament. It was a simplification of the art deco style, less deco. So the building can rock and roll.

ZA: There is this particular building called the Apotheek Sputnik in Kebayoran Baru. It has huge hole punched out on it facade. Its crazy.

JW: Yes! It looks just like a rocket. During that time, rockets or atom becomes a symbol. It was at a time where the forms, styles and aesthetics of the Flash Gordon movies or Batman. But that is happening in the 1960s and 1970s.

ZA: So it wasnt so much that this trend was regionally specific, that is to say Semarang was

the only one in that way.

JW: No, it was everywhere! Its pop culture that spread across the world, even Angola, Africa. For me, that is not the kind of revival, but rather about having fun. Let’s not think about war anymore, let’s play. Like hippies.

ZA: Hippie architecture.

JW: If you listen to the song by The Beatles and Bee Gees at that time, it is very sweet. Even Queen, it is rock alot of energy but its not like jazz, jazz is lazy, relaxed its for the oldies. Still it is about peace, about love and that is something that is then translated to architectural form.

ZA: I’m wondering within that sea of generational revival, rock and roll and things like that, if there were in these regions, in Java for example, exceptions to that. So far example if one were to go to Palembang, one would see pockets of a certain Jengki style houses, Soviet or American style and also another style that was specific to that region - in that you were able to distinguish between a house in Semarang and a house in Palembang.

JW: The style is not really as clear. Most of these houses were designed by contractors and not architects. Well, its mass housing done by contractors. In Dutch its called anamer. Up to the 1960s or 70s at that time, there were no architecture schools but only departments of building. So you would learn design. I am a product of that era. I would undergo several design studio, timber construction studio, concrete studio, etc. So it takes 5-7 years to finish architectural education. That is why my degree is IR, an engineering degree. These buildings, were very similar to shophouses. They were copied by Chinese, Arab or local contractors. In general, there is no architecture involved. Yet it is not a copy paste operation, Jengki architecture is individual contractors, and not the developer.

ZA: And Thomas Karsten came in to the picture before all this.

JW: That was in 1932 before the colonial period. He is a socialist at heart. He was asking the question of how to provide mass housing, cheaper building typologies, better quality of living with a social agenda. He also developed masterplan, like inm Semarang. To cross subsidise from the rich areas of Semarang to the lower income ones. The tax from the land sale of the more affluent areas would be used to develop real estate for the middle class and lower class housing in the city.

ZA: So he was a nice colonialist so to speak.

JW: Yes, he was really a socialist at heart. Even in Frankfurt, Germany, people were thinking about developing the siedlung, the communal social housing. In Holland, this was also the same. Ernst May developed the idea of the modular kitchen. The idea is picked up by IKEA. You can do mass production, efficient and low cost. Ernst May hosted the second CIAM. Corbusier later hijacked the idea of that through CIAM the 4th. This was later developed further through his Unite d Habitation and city for 2 million people.

Into Palembang:

In Conversation with Professor Johannes Ariyanto

Against a backdrop of soft keys playing on piano, Erik L’Heureux sits down with Professor Johannes Ariyanto of Sriwijaya University in Palembang in the company of his studio group to delve deeper into the latest developments in Palembang and reflection of a local’s insight into the city.

JA: We have big event Asian games, and that’s why we have the big LRT that’s being built.

EGL: Yes, where is that coming from? Is that from the Federal government? Why was Palembang chosen and not any other city?

JA: Because in 2004 we had National Sport Event. In 2012 we had the ASEAN games. So right now the Indonesian government chose to Palembang as a possible repeat site for hosting the Asian games alongside Jakarta. The government intended to make Palembang a new venue for sport.

EGL: But is there some reason why there is some reason to develop Sumatra as opposed to Java. Also they could have chosen Bandung as a site. Is this anything to do with resources available? In the last 100 years, petroleum was very big and so was the amount of natural resources. Is it still a big thing here?

JA: Its not so good now. Unemployment is down and it seems the resources are beginning to deplete.

EGL: So, whats driving the economy now? Sport is one thing what could be other sources?

JA: Palm oil plantations are big now.

EGL: Yes, when we flew in we did see some Palm oil plantations against the backdrop of the landscape.

JA: Yes the industry is not so big. Yet these plantations and sport seem to be the driving forces of economy in this region these days.

EGL: Another thing I noticed in Palembang, is that to me at least, it seems like the flattest city I have ever seen. It is so so flat, its amazing.

JA: Yes the flatness, sometimes makes it prone to flooding. Especially in seasons of big thunderstorms that we tend to get here.

EGL: So how far do you have to drive before you begin to see changes in elevation?

JA: The highest area is only 70m above sea level.

EGL: Is that why in a way Palembang had become a city? Because along its location of the river, it is quite far in. There would have been other locations much suited to Palembang if trading and commerce were things that were planned for the city, for example nearer to the mouth of the river where it meets the sea.

JA: Im not sure why Sriwijaya had chosen this region for the city of Palembang. But some reason cite it as a place suitable for hiding. Back then, piracy was an issue. If they hide here, it is safe. Pasal Ilir 16 was the biggest trading market of this region at that time and the deep location of Palembang ensured its safety.

EGL: Was the Pasar there a site of a Thomas Karsten building at some point as well?

JA: Yes there was one, but it has burnt down. It was a market made out of wood instead of the concrete columns that you see in Pasar Cinde and Pasar Johar.

EGL: Was the Pasar Cinde here was it then by Karsten? It isn’t right? It was built in 1950s. Who was the architect in charge?

JA: Im not sure of his real name. The guy who did it used to work for Karsten’s office and came back to Palembang to work in the Public Works Department in Palembang. He was the one who created Cinde. That’s why there is a duplicate.

EGL: Yes, even the plan was very similar.

JA: It was a mini version of Johar.

EGL: Because now that it has been torn down. Is there a lot of contestation over it? Do people like it?

JA: Yes, because it come directly top down from the government they try to make the new one. I have the picture of the original one I will send you some later today.

EGL: I managed a trip back in 2016 right before the teardown. I’m wondering what is the reason behind its demolition?

JA: Ah yes, the government is interested to have a sporting event in place of the Pasar’s location.

EGL: I was reading somewhere that Karsten had also done some masterplanning projects and what was the extent of that?

JA: Yes indeed he had. In (inaudible words at 8.36). Some sort of suburban projects.

EGL: Are they still here?

JA: Its called (inaudible words 9:00)

EGL: I was looking on google maps and there were the refineries, something that looks like American suburbia and then some kampungs next to it. Do people still live there in these American suburbias? The difference is so dramatic. But I’m assuming that most people live in a kind of kampung yes? Where do most of the residents in Palembang live?

JA: The kampung is still in good condition. Some kampungs have developed itself to attract tourism.

EGL: Are we able to go? Is it safe?

JA: You can go to Kampung Kapitan. Al Munawar is Arabic.

EGL: (turns to the rest of the group) Do you guys have any questions to ask?

JA: Yes I will try to answer them.

EGL: Now’s your chance…

EA: Sorry, I’d like to ask. So for sporting events, is it a one off thing? ASEAN games happens during a certain period, and then the games are over. What happens to the investment afterwards?

JA: It is usually given back to the people or reused for other sporting events. I am actually very angry with this LRT. It cuts through Cinde. I don’t know exactly the plan of the infrastructure after the event. The LRT itself is not connected to the next ‘noda’ or neighborhood. After you go down the LRT, where will it lead to?

EGL: Do you know after the Asian games, how much will they be charging people for the use of this LRT. Will it be affordable to people?

JA: 2000 rupiah. It is too expensive. The LRT maybe becomes like a statue. Nobody knows where the money is coming from, and this is what people are angry about.

(The rest of the group get roused by and acknowledge Pak Johannes’ statements by agreeing with him)

Like in Shanghai, after Olympic, it just died. Brazil as well.

EGL: Is there a lot of discussions here about this issue? Activists? Or is it a strong government?

JA: Its is a very strong and hard government. Like in the case of Cinde, there were petitions and strong resistance by activists but still the government pursued the project. That’s the reality.

EGL: Has there been the effects of climate change in Palembang?

JA: Palembang has already become a flooding city. Because of the river, and the land is very close.

EGL: Has it always been historically like that?

JA: Yes.

EGL: I also noticed that at the Ampera bridge, two other bridges are being built alongside it. Is it because the city is growing very fast?

JA: Because Ampera is not so good for traffic. So they will build a new bridge or support. Maybe Ampera will be closed for cars and the pedestrian will flank around it for tourism.

AL: One of the other questions that we had were, why the development is always geared toward the North. Rather than the South side. Historically we understand it, but is it still the case today?

JA: In the South, the government developed it because of its function as a sport city. Today the south is considered swampy, very hard to develop higher buildings. The land of the North side is better. Therefore they try to develop more towards the airport due to land quality and proximity to airport.

UC: Right now in Palembang, it seems to be the biggest exporter of palm oil. What is the main means of exporting this oil. Do you still use the Musi river?

JA: Coal is still transported through the Musi River whereas the palm oil is transported by road.

EGL: And the coal is mined from mountains of Sumatra? Is it strip mining - do they cut out the mountain? And where does this coal go?

JA: They go to China.

UC: Also for example things like seafood. Where does it come from? For example, in Musi River are you able to fish?

JA: Yes, you can. In the evening it is still very lively, with people fishing, swimming. You can try.

JP: Is there any effort to improve the traffic connection to places.

JA: Government says that the LRT is a good way to connect the city. I don’t think it is a good argument for Palembang. They forget the layer of the old city which is very important if not more important than the new city area. The LRT does not connect these two.

EC: It seems like in the past many of the locals used to live along the river on floating houses. How do the locals still engage with the river?

JA: Many of the kampungs still engage with the river. The locals directly use the river as a means of transport to other parts along the river as opposed to using a car.

EC: Sometimes the boat is called a ketek. A water taxi that still operates within Palembang. However it is on the decline.

EGL: Are any of the kampungs becoming gentrified? Or is there a conscious addition of concrete in these areas? So if you had additional money you would try to build on land? Has there been any kampungs that have been restored?

JA: Kampung Al Munawar and Kampung Kapitan are being developed and maintained by the government.

AL: But are they increasingly becoming tourist destinations?

EGL: And people still live there?

JA: Yes

EGL: Do people start to value the kampung, the history, the original typology? If you had some capital would people attempt to restore the houses of their ancestors?

JA: Yes they do. They just paint it. They maintain the heritage and did not want to change too much. Kampung Munawar is a prime example of this change by people. The government supports this change.

EA: Can I ask, usually for national and international sporting events the government tends to use police to clear out the city to project a certain image of the city. Is this something that you see here in Palembang.

JA: Because the event will be in August, I am not so sure I see it yet.

EA: Are the local people responding positively to this change? Or are they more wary of more orang asing coming in to Palembang.

JA: When the ASEAN games were going up, people were very happy to participate because of the economic benefit. The general agreement within people is that the changes are good for themselves and the city. Because they have the new facility in the old city, if you keep the old kampung, heritage cannot work alone. It needs money to sustain.

AC: If you were of money, would you choose to live on the outside of the city or the inside? A high rise apartment or a kampung? What is their ideal?

JA: Some people still stay in the kampung. They don’t have any reason to move away far from the river. They still engage with the river.

AC: In light of the city that is a exceptionally flat city, does the government still build apartments?

JA: We don’t have any case for high rise apartments. So many apartments have been planned for and even started to build, yet it is still unfinished projects.

EGL: I have done some kind of research in Semarang, Pasar Johar, something that I found interesting was that there is a reinterpretation Dutch colonial history. So people were really kind of proud of it and really made it their own. Does that happen here? How do they think about that period of colonialism? When we drove around we saw houses that belonged to the colonial era that still exists. Do they erase that time or do they keep it?

JA: Palembang today really began in 1920s when the Dutch came. When you go on the Ampera bridge museum, Palmebnag is a mixed of colonial and the traditional Palembang house. That is why the people are not very estranged from the current way of life. Much of it has already been part of their reality for a long time. Karsten is very smart, kind of create the bridge between the traditional and new.

EGL: And now what do you think, are there architects here doing stuff in Palembang. Using

contemporary building techniques?

JA: Student identification is about more of the kampong a

EGL: What is the local feature of Palembang?

JA: Widodo said the specialty of Palembang is Mie Celor. It is a mix.

EGL: So traditionally where does this Mie celor come from, it has Chinese, local and arab influences.

AC: Is food an important part of Palembang?

JA: Yes indeed, penpe for example you eat with a coconut gravy another version of hybrid food.

EGL: Hybrid also warrants a way to do it. Almost compact like.

AL: When we were walking around, we also observed a number of Chinese people in Palembang. I was wondering, when you describe Mie celor analogy, are there any kind of hybrid groups of communities.

JA: Yes the Chinese area even speak Arabic language.

EGL: What is the local community then?

JA: The Melayu.

EGL: Who was the one who had shared the map with the etching and we saw a wall around the city. Who had built the wall? Was it the Dutch?

JA: It was the locals that had built the wall.

EGL: Any traces of that left?

JA: Yes, at Ampera, before the bridge there are some traces of it.

EGL: We were looking at the drawing and there was a camel in there. Do you think there really was a camel there or was it the Dutch that drew it in?

(Ashley whips out her phone to show an ancient map of Palembang which shows Walled City and camels in the foreground)

JA: Yes you are right this is a camel!

UC: Before the Ampera Bridge was built, what was the method of crossing the river?

JA: Ferry.

EA: What do people do for entertainment?

JA: Fishing, it really is fishing. You can go with friends.

EGL: Does Palembang feel like it’s on the up or is it on a down? Some cities feel like they’ve had their heyday whereas some feel like it’s growing. Where does Palembang fit in this?

JA: People generally see it as an up, the LRT is going up the games will be had soon. But for me personally, it is on a down. The government have cut down many great buildings in place of new ones. Kampung Kapitan is a prime example of a mixture of typology between, the chinese settlers and the malay locals. Yet in its rejuvenation, the government merely painted the kampungs as an attempt to improve it without any detail research or study of the building.

EGL: When we were walking around and some of them managed to speak to the locals. They were speaking Mandarin. Why is it Mandarin and not Cantonese or Hokkien or some other dialect? Mandarin is more usually associated with the more Northern part of China whereas the more Southern part, the more trading side are speaking more Hokkien etc.

UC: It sounded like it had a dialect.

AC: I was speaking to some of them and they thought that I was from China. I said I was from Singapore and they did not believe me.

EA: Their accent is like Indonesian accent with Chinese.

AL: It also sounds alot like the Malay language sometimes - but in Mandarin. I’d like to ask, you mentioned that they did not restore the houses properly, do you think it’s better if they did? What are some of the challenges?

JA: People are interested in restoring their house in a meaningful way. That said for me I think it is important that it starts with good research and study into the area first. Because it is used with wooden material unlike Semarang and Jakarta which is concrete or brick. If they add the new wood sometimes it is not very good - and we can see the clear differences in this.

EGL: All the timber that was used for the kampungs historically, were they made out of timber from the plantations nearby? Now many of which have moved up? Does that change the whole ecosystem of building the kampung.

JA: The wooden material of the old kampung is a very high quality one. Ulen and terumbasi.

EGL: So where can you get it now? So you can get it locally now and is very expensive. But the palm oil plantation, has it been here for a while now?

JA: It is not new, maybe 10 years now. Before that it was rubber. And always a kind of plantation.

EGL: So the big refineries that we see, is that petroleum or palm oil? In the South side. It looked like petroleum but I wasn’t sure.

JA: Yes it is petroleum. And people live beside it.

(private discussion between EGL and JA)

EGL: Im just curious to know how big is the architecture school here?

JA: In one class is about 200 students.

JA: Try to keep the identity of Palembang. UNESCO guidance is needed for the core area. People have needs and the government wants an international city. I think people are ask-

ing if it good for the city? Are they able to swim in the river if the city develops. Can people still fish or transport through the river once the LRT is done? In my opinion Palembang does not require th LRT, they can transport by the river.

EC: If you can think of one building that is symbolic of Palembang what would it be?

JA: Please visit Kampung Al Munawar. The government had initially wanted to demolish the Kampung but the people managed to persuade the government to keep it. There’s are the Yemen people or Hadramaut. I don’t know what the plan for Kampung Kapitan is, whether it is for tourism or demolition - I hope the extent of the demolition plans are only for Pasar Cinde and not for the kampungs.

EC: Do you see the city moving upwards due to the repercussions of climate change to move vertically as oppose to horizontally?

EGL: Is there a sensibility that Palembang looks to Singapore looks to Jakarta and says we want a city like that with tall towers or is there a local embrace of its flatness that is very specific to Palembang?

JA: Government always says, look to Melaka or Yogyakarta

EGL: Is this inscribed in the zoning where you can’t build high?

JA: No not yet. To answer the question on climate change, maybe it’s not the flooding - for example today is a very hot day. Everyone is burning. Compared to last night, there was a thunderstorm, and today its extremely hot.

EGL: In Singapore, its very much so the same. We aren’t that different after all.

Erik and the studio thanks Johannes Ariyanto for his time as the pianist played the very same track as when they had first started the conversation.

References

The Politics of the Envelope

Director Francis Ford Coppola /

The Life & Work of Thomas

/

Fitzcarraldo /

Mee Pok Man /

Director Werner Herzog / 1982

Director Eric Koo / 1995

Building on the Boundary — Modern Architecture in the Tropics”. /

Karsten

H. Le Roux / 2004

Joost Coté, et al. / 2017