Case Study - Collage City by Colin Rowe & Fred Koetter

COLLAGE CITY Chow Sum Yin Sammy Ching Tun Yeung Bosco Hui Wing Sze Sze Cheung Lit Fung Andy

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Author : Colin Rowe & Fred Koetter, published in 1984 by The MIT Press Summary : Critique of modern utopianism and a proposal for radical heterogeneity of appropriated form. In short the authors is acting post-modernism of architecture in 1970-80s.

Wiesbaden, c.1900. figure-ground plan. Colin Rowe, Fred Koetter, Collage City

Colin Rowe Influences on world architecture and urbanism in 20th century.

British-born Architect, American-naturalised Architectural Historian, Critic, Theoretician.

As a professor at Cornell University and the University of Texas.

Bachelor's in architecture from the University of Liverpool.

Fred Koetter British Architect teacher, critic, urbanist, and former Dean of the Yale School of Architecture.

As a professor at Cornell University, the University of Kentucky, Yale University and Harvard University.

Bachelor's in architecture from the University of Oregon Master’s in architecture from Cornell University.

Historical Context & Background Modernism 1920s-1950s ●

Architecture in 19th century from had a great revolutions in building materials, engineering and technology.

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Most of the architects in this period want to break through the traditional architectural styles and to build architecture where focus on functionality and new.

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The style of modernism is to refuse any ornament and practice minimalism. With new materials such as reinforced concrete, steel, iron...etc, to build taller and lighter buildings.

Villa savoye, Le Corbusier

Guggenheim Museum, Frank Lloyd Wright

Seagram Building, Mies van der Rohe

Historical Context & Background Post-Modernism 1950s-2000s ●

It is a movement that against modernism.

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Introduced by the architect Denise Scott Brown and theorist Robert Venturi.

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Postmodernism is an electic, thus decorative & colourful style of architecture .

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In late 1990s, the movement divided into deconstructivism, high-tech architecture and neo-futurism.

Venna venturi house, Robert Venturi

“I like elements which are hybrid rather than "pure", compromising rather than "clean".”

Robert Venturi

Sydney opera house, Jorn Utzon

Opus, Frank Gehry

Introduction ●

In lights of modernism movement, where proposed to start a new Utopian city, the author criticized the city planning of the messianic modernists.

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Rowe and Koether thought that without scientific and the abandon of poetics will lead to failure of urban designs.

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Therefore, the authors propose that urban design should go with fragmentation, “bricolage”, as well as transformation of interpretation in order to build a functional network, this is then the real “utopias”.

Plan voisin, 1925 Le Corbusier

New York, pulic housing in lower Manhattan

Utopia: Decline and Fall

Claude-Nicolas Ledoux: project for La Saline de Chaux, 1776

Classical Utopia

Doesn’t create a Better World

Andre: a mid-19th century project for an idea community

After human beings understand a certain degree of knowledge

Combine Utopianism & Blueprint

Le Corbusier: Paris Volsin, 1925

Action to achieve

Activist Utopia

Not fulfill the self-examination of Classical Utopia

Rowe & Koetter were influenced by the ideas of Karl Popper, especially the idea of Utopianism, which Utopia is designed and isolated model of society, also is despotic and lack of tolerance.

Although they are not reject utopianism entirely, they believed modern+tradition+fantasy+real.

“After the Millennium” How does the architecture development be if the Utopia disillusionment…?

In 1960-70s...

An ideal city should be both a theatre of memory and a theatre of prophecy...

Cult of Townscape

Cult of Science Fiction

Pedestrian Precinct and A Proposed City in“Townscape”, Gordon Cullen

“Townscape” is conservative, nostalgic and vague idea.

Archigram, plug-in city, 1964

Disney World, Robert Venturi

Combined of “Townscape” & “Futurism”

What Do People Want?

Ithaca, New York, State Street, 1869

space city project, Arato Isozaki

the spatial city, Yona Friedman, 1961

These thinkings seem energetic and yearn for science fiction world but they are too extreme to the authors.

Combined of “Townscape” & “Futurism”

“Crisis of the Object: Predicament of Texture” Discussed the collage from the technical level as a city design technique.

Classical city - "texture of the city"

Mordernist city - "entity of the city"

SOLID & VOID

is far more

versatile in its structure.

Le Corbusier : project for Saint-Die, figure-ground plan

Parma, figure-ground plan

Almost all black : Voids in largely unmanipulated solids Genuinely Unplanned / City of fabrics (Space) - Continuity

Almost all white : Solids in largely unmanipulated voids Overtly Planned / City of objects

INCORPORATIVE VIRTUES of BOTH CITIES & ALLOW COEXISTENCE Contextualism - It means to integrate new and tradition.

Suggests that buildings should act both as space occupier and space definer - maintaining an individual presence while providing continuity to the urban texture.

Collision City and the Politics of “Bricolage” Introduce: ● ●

Discuss the designers and creators of the spaces rather than the spaces themselves Cities could be include collaging of variety of urban elements including shaped, figure open space into the continuous fabric of a city with the proposed concept of bricolage

Constructive Monolithic architecture The importance of thought

A balance between the scientific

engineering & fantasy craftsmanship

Resonance Purism ( Hedgehog )

should be achieved by an architect or urban designer in order to produce contemporary, efficient and flexible solutions for future

Non - Dogmatists

situations.

Eliminate any thoughts of control Pluralism ( Fox )

“Collage City and the Reconquest of Time”

lacking prescription shifted contexts remembrances recycled meanings metamorphoses

ARCHITECTURE

POST MODERN

Collage City = PAST + PRESENT + FUTURE

COLLECTIVE MEMORY

scientific picturesque antique rational disordered

“Man in, a word, has no nature; what he has is...history.

Expressed differently: what nature is to things, history, resgestae, is to man.”

IS THERE ANY COLLAGE CITY IN HK ?

Yau Ma Tei History

KWL Peninsula was ceded to Britain

A natural port for fisherman

Gov sold the seabeds of YMT, buyer should reclaim the land & develope

1860

1873

1876

Reclamation St was built and a public square was built in-between YMT police station and Tin Hau temple

Police station was built opposite to Tin Hau temple

Further reclamation and a ferry pier was built to HKI

The Nathan Rd was extended

1890

1893

1900

1910

The OZP of YMT had made provisions for public facilities, -High density of residentials development is in the north of Public Square St

YMT became a trade centre, including the YMT fruit market

Temple Street was built

YMT cinema was built

1913

1920

1929

-Public facilities are zoned in the south, including hospital, community centre.

1956

Aerial Urban Photos of Yau Ma Tei coastline in 1880s

coastline

coastline

1945

1949

1967

1972

1977

1997

2007

2020

coastline

credit: hkgov

YAU MA TEI

Tin Hau Temple & Yung Shue Tau (1840s)

Yau Ma Tei in 1992 Built in: 1840s A monument of traditional fishing, Tin Hau is the god of protecting the fishers As a small Asian society in the old Yau Ma Tei, so most of the activities were happened near the temple Tin Hau Temple is the heart of early Yau Ma Tei development Since Tin Hau Temple is an important public space under Chinese traditional culture, it is the focal point of a society The “Square” of Square Street means Yung Shue Tau, where is the gathering space in front of the temple

Yau Ma Tei Red Brick House 1895 Collective memories : Historic : Oldest former pumping station in HK before WWII Grade I historic building Culture : Represents the earliest charged water service for Kowloon Later became post office Social : Once became home of street sleepers to warm the neighbourhood Provided clean and cheap water supply to improve people’s living standard

Brick arch

Woodern shutters

Arch interior structure

Red Brick House in 1990s

Red Brick House in 2014

Yau Ma Tei Wholesale Fruit Market (1913)

In 1913 - started as a straw shed The buildings we see now were built in the 20s and 50s Low-tech, low-budget methods and construction materials (bricks, plywood, zinc, nylon) The permanent structure are flexible Signage before World War II shows the identity of its trade and historical building

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As a fruit market since 1965 Collect the memories from the local markret Maintain the architecturual feature Traditional market are merged with the new one

Temple Street (1920s) A flea market which business hours start from 15:00/18:00-23:00/1:00. It is one of the most unique Hong Kong local architecture and public area.

When the structure of the stalls are expanded, they will extend the whole street-side.

The stall’s components, waved zinc coated steel plates or plastic plates for roof covered materials Nylon canvas provide the stretchable roof for storage Nylon canvas supported by bamboo, thin steel columns or ropes Steel structure behind the stall is mainly for storage used when the stalls are closed i) Named Temple Street because of the near temple, Tin Hau Temple ii) The icon of night crowded street life in Hong Kong iii) The structure design allows “organic” business mode which can maximise the use of a narrow area. iv) Temple Street is a filming material and background for lots of movies

Yau Ma Tei Police Station (1922)

Collective memories : Historic : Built in 1922. Additions were made after World War II Grade 2 historic buildin Social : Yau Ma Tei was home to a major typhoon shelter for boats, which made the building very much at the centre of the community

1947 (Bird eyes view)

2000s Source : Heritage Impact Assessment Report

1978

2000s

Culture : 19th century, classical revival was the most recent of the many revivals in the history of architecture Create a strong streetscape to present a reference for a time when Yau Ma Tei was packed with two to three-storey tenement houses before World War II. Architectural : Neo-classic style An ancient Greek and Roman art and architecture Facades :symmetry to the composition and create a sense of rhythm Superimposed colonnades of Doric and lconic orders, Roman arches, entrance portico and pediment The roof are constructed with Chinese-styled pan and roll tile system

Yau Ma Tei Theatre (1929) Collective memories : Historic : Grade II historic buildings Culture : Testimony for HK cinema/movies growth Development of nolgastic HK local movies e.g. Wang Fei-hung

1960s

Social : Mainly for working class leisure Community node

stone arch art deco inclined roof

stone column

Source : Architectural Services Department

roof tile : prevent water stacking sound insulating material

2020 Theatre interior

Mido Cafe (1950s) Collective memories : -

restaurant + residence traditional HK restaurant layout neon signboard mosaic tiles curved form simple(modernism)

CATERING

PREPARATION

WATER AREA

KITCHEN

Source : Architectural Services Department

Yau Ma Tei Car Park (1957)

Yau Ma Tei Car Park was built in 1957 and in 1977, the Gascoigne Road Flyover was built to go through the building. The car park is planning to demolish in 2021 for the development of Center Kowloon Route.

Collective memories : Culture : Modernism The only one building is penetrated by flyover in Hong Kong Many divination stalls and markets are near the car parks Society: Used for over half of a century

Man Wah Sun Chuen (1961) Collective memories : Historic : large scale private residential migration from countries

1970s (Jordan Harbor)

Social : Satisfied population growth

Inclined edge favors sunlight

Culture : reclamation & highway development lower living standard unique windows decoration by locals create unique feature

2014 (Jordan MTR)

Architectural : commercial + residential style closely connected(easier for spatial configuration) inclined edge provides sunlight Modern condensed residential Source : Architectural Services Department

1960s Shanghai Street became the residential area.

1980s Shanghai Street was the main street in Kowloon.

1940s Shanghai Street

2000 until Now Shanghai Street is an area of mixed residential and retail.

1880s Yau Ma Tei was a Typhoon Shelter

Future Yau Mong District Urban renewal

Shanghai Street

Yau Ma Tei is a “Collage City”.

Andy Cheung

Sammy Chow

Sze Hui

Bosco Ching

Reference https://www.academia.edu/28920682/Case_study_of_Collage_City http://architectureandurbanism.blogspot.com/2010/04/colin-rowe-1920-99-and-fred-koetter.html https://www.academia.edu/33124399/Book_Review_Collage_City_Eng_Version_%E8%AF%BB%E4%B9%A6%E6%8A%A5%E5%91%8A https://senakocakaya.wordpress.com/2015/06/04/1225/ https://www.sahanz.net/wp-content/uploads/jasper-m-architectural-urban-strategy.pdf https://www.sas.upenn.edu/andrea-mitchell-center/sites/www.sas.upenn.edu.andrea-mitchell-center/files/uploads/PennDCC_PostwarPostscripts-1.pdf http://www.ctc.org.hk/en/directcontrol/temple20.asp https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2146780/mangoes-murders-hong-kong-wholesale-fruit-market-yau-ma-tei https://www.discoverhongkong.com/seasia/explore/arts/discover-cantonese-opera-in-hong-kong.html https://blackmomo.tw/mido-cafe/ http://www.hkmemory.org/ymt/text/index.php?p=home https://www.hkmemory.hk/collections/oral_history/All_Items_OH/oha_73/bio/index.html

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