WEISONG THE RED SHELTER
B LAB LK N G 59 TE AH LO H EI K GH TS
The Red ShelTeR promotes the concept of mutual support in the setting of a community living . i ntegrating the idea of awareness and community into the existing fire engine access point with the element of fun and fitness as a form of bridging . a dvocating the importance
of fire safety and fire fighting instructions and aims to enhance the perception of how a community can see and respond to the emergency together in times of crisis . i t is common
for people to have the tendency to avoid spaces that are marked as an emergency zone , even if it is an inviting open ground .
N
however,
it is exactly when there is an emergency
situation , that people should come together to form an undivided spirit against the odds .
B LAB LK N G 58 TE AH LO H EI K GH TS
the
idea of having a multipurpose space , which allows the community to come together
ARCHITECTURE // PORTFOLIO
regardless of safe or emergency times , softens the notion between the ‘ restricted ’ and
B EAN S I TE 6
SITE PLAN
E
O
T
M
A WAR EN ES S + C O M M U N I TY
BRANDING
‘public’
area .
The Red ShelTeR
will become a bridge between various mental and physical
thresholds and aims to forge a sense of identity and pride within the community and
promotes residents to take up ownership in shaping a more closed - knitted neighbourhood .
PLAN
AXONOMETRIC
re gul a r da y s
i n e m e rge ncy
M U LTI P U R P O S E . ADAP TI VE
EARTH
LAI WEI SONG . A0184143J | LEE HONG XUAN . A0169997W
re gul a r da y s
PERSPECTIVE
e m e rge ncy
A safe zone which provides a meeting point for the neighborhood to render assistance to one another. There will be safety equipment, which the residents are well-exposed to, like first aid kits, automated external defibrillator (AED), fire alarms, fire extinguishers, emergency phones, as well as other necessities.
It is a communal space that invites the residents to dwell, which also focuses on the educational aspect of the importance of fire safety and prevention, by bringing transparency to the safety equipment through infographic explanation and insertion of interactive fixtures which are inspired by fire fighting training.
The transformation of the seating area into a temporary first-aid post changes the outlook of the intervention, in addition to fire alarms, the strong essence of the colour red will alert the neighborhood of the crisis. It will be a point of collection and access for ambulance and paramedics, and this will accelerate the process of hospitals’ send-offs and increases the chances of survivability.
The fun elements, such as ladders, nets, and rope swing, promotes the importance of upkeeping individual healthy lifestyle through fitness. A gathering space for residents as they pass their time interacting with other residents, at the same time waiting to pick their kids up from school bus.
C O N S C I O U S FU N
FLOW
C O M M U N AL L I VI N G + M U TU AL S U P P O RT
INCOPORATION
LAI WEI SONG ACADEMIC WORKS
BUNDLE the timber pavilion
Instructor: Joseph Lim Ee Man (Dr) Individual Project National University of Singapore Year 2 Semester 1, 2018
Design Brief: To design a pavilion which is simple and elegant. It should be a place for students to hang-out, to do self-study and have small group discussions. It should be an inviting place where students would enjoy spending time and maybe even host a small party. Structurally, it should push the limit of timber properties. Consider the sequence of how it will be assembled. Design Concept: A pavilion assembled by simple construction method and be easily stacked up by builders. A space where users can feel a sense of cosiness and protection. Design Strategies: The project was inspired by FT Architects - Boxing Club. Bundle adopts a simple construction method of stacking. With a module that was formed by 4 pieces of timber, it can be scaled up to many different possibilities. The interior of Bundle is just like a cave carved out from the stacked up timber modules. The concave space gives the users a sense of enclosure and protection. It promotes users to be dwelling and hanging out a little longer.The pavilion has an accessible roof which provides a good lookout point for users who enjoys height and great scenic view.
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTION
STREET VIEW
GROUND FLOOR PLAN
SECOND FLOOR PLAN
DETAILING
ISOMETERIC VIEW
SECTION A-A
SECTION B-B
BREATHER
a restpoint that embraces the little guilin
Instructor: Joseph Lim Ee Man (Dr) Individual Project National University of Singapore Year 2 Semester 1, 2018
Design Brief: Design a visitor/ information or educational center at the site.The place introduces visitors to the site and its surrounding, and promote and educate visitors on what the site has to offer. The programme of the building should be in response to the site context. Design Concept: A building that embraces the existing site context and brings people together to better appreciate this hidden gem. A new rest point for the recreation belt, for outdoor lovers to have a connection. Design Strategies: The Breather sites herself on the center of the site, somewhere not too close to the lake, somewhere not noticeable at first glance. It takes one to have the willingness to take the first step before he or she is able to discover the wonders of where the circulation path will lead. Existing circulation paths are widen as a gesture of welcoming people who have not yet discover the site. Breather has a building footprint of 420 sqm, and because it is lifted up with bundle columns the undercroft is left untouched. Existing users are still able to go back to their favourite hideouts.The building embraces the current walking trail, and made it into a courtyard. People have an option to either explore the rest stop, or carry on with their usual routine and paths. Breather has framed up different site elements which allow new users to better appreciate Little Guilin. There are skylights and grates opening which allows users to experience how is it to be like within a tree. The double volume spaces and opened viewing ports also provide many opportunities for interactions. Thus, Breather serves as a bridge that brings people to the site. The architecture is a buffer, a “tour guide”, that shows the beauty and genius loci to the people.
7.
PARTI DIAGRAMS
EXTERNAL RENDER
SECTIONS & ELEVATIONS
MAIN RENDER
PARK CORE
an envelope with the nature in labrador park
Individual Project National University of Singapore Year 2 Semester 2, 2019
Design Statement: In the modern day, Labrador park has now been developed into a leisure place where people visit for varies recreational activities. however, an intangible distance between nature and culture has also been formed, and the nature has seemed lost their relevance to present recreational culture. Many recreational facilities seem to be just installations added to Labrador park. Users now come and go, and it appears that the nature has been detached from the current recreation culture. The architecture project aims to question the notion of recreational areas being just “add-on” and explores how with envelope design we can instil a more purposeful park visit. Design Strategies: The design tapped on the key aspects of a monsoon window and created alternative to the occupancy, by having more than just a primitive later to respond to climate and weather, the recessions are reimagined as various functions which is inspired by human anthropometry. The envelope is now a filter for the trees, as it filters the behaviours of humans by inspiring them on how to use the space based on users’ instincts. Users are inspired to have better interpretation of a tree and a better association with the Nature.Through the series of envelope development, the architecture creates a place in Labrador Park in which users can now have a deeper reconnection with the inner cores of themselves with the Nature beaucse that is the reason why poeple go to a park to have their recreational activities in the first place.
DESIGN DIAGRAMS
SITE PLAN
SECTION A-A
ENVELOPE OVERVIEW
RENDER - SPACE 1
RENDER - SPACE 2
PART SECTION & DETAILING
SECTION B-B
MARKET
a new bridge between green spaces and the community
Instructor: Roy Pang Individual Project National University of Singapore Year 3 Semester 1, 2019
Design Write Up: Sustainability in this context goes beyond just being environmental. It should be seen holistically with the aspect of economic and social benefits. With the increase of future residential projects in Pasir Panjang district, we start to look at a bigger picture, the high density living in our city. Density can be defined with the correlation between population and amenities. When the demand increases, supply naturally needs to correspond. But is there a sustainable way of keeping up with our growing city? The project explores on the topic of how are green spaces can be better ustilised by the community. Design Strategies: Adopting the concept of market, the retail aspect of it will generate the economical benefits to help the greens. Incorporation of educational spaces allows a deeper exchange and understanding of the community to be better equipped with eco knowledge. Farms adopts argoforestry framework with encourage a wider range of micro environments which promotes the expansion of Biodiversity. Crops practice selective and successive planting which ensures markets store can be supplied whole year round without issues. The Market is a new bridge between the community and green spaces. The project expands and relooks at the “in-between” and redefine the preconceived notion on how users should interact with green spaces.
7.
CONCEPT DIAGRAMS
URBAN PLAN
7.
CONCEPT DIAGRAMS
THE RED SHELTER
BL BLK AN 59 GA T H H ELO EIG K HT S
The Red ShelTeR promotes the concept of mutual support in the setting of a community living . i ntegrating the idea of awareness and community into the existing fire engine access point with the element of fun and fitness as a form of bridging . a dvocating the importance of fire safety and fire fighting instructions and aims to enhance the perception of how a community can see and respond to the emergency together in times of crisis . i t is common
for people to have the tendency to avoid spaces that are marked as an emergency zone , even if it is an inviting open ground .
N
however,
it is exactly when there is an emergency
situation , that people should come together to form an undivided spirit against the odds .
BL BLK AN 58 GA T H H ELO EIG K HT S
the
idea of having a multipurpose space , which allows the community to come together
regardless of safe or emergency times , softens the notion between the ‘ restricted ’ and
BE A N S I T E 6
SITE PLAN
E
O
T
M
A WA RE NE S S + CO M M UNITY
BRANDING
‘public’
area .
The Red ShelTeR
will become a bridge between various mental and physical
thresholds and aims to forge a sense of identity and pride within the community and
promotes residents to take up ownership in shaping a more closed - knitted neighbourhood .
PLAN
AXONOMETRIC
re gular d a ys
in emerg e ncy
M ULT I P URP O S E . A D A P T I V E
EARTH
LAI WEI SONG . A0184143J | LEE HONG XUAN . A0169997W
re gula r da ys
PERSPECTIVE
em erg en cy
A safe zone which provides a meeting point for the neighborhood to render assistance to one another. There will be safety equipment, which the residents are well-exposed to, like first aid kits, automated external defibrillator (AED), fire alarms, fire extinguishers, emergency phones, as well as other necessities.
It is a communal space that invites the residents to dwell, which also focuses on the educational aspect of the importance of fire safety and prevention, by bringing transparency to the safety equipment through infographic explanation and insertion of interactive fixtures which are inspired by fire fighting training.
The transformation of the seating area into a temporary first-aid post changes the outlook of the intervention, in addition to fire alarms, the strong essence of the colour red will alert the neighborhood of the crisis. It will be a point of collection and access for ambulance and paramedics, and this will accelerate the process of hospitals’ send-offs and increases the chances of survivability.
The fun elements, such as ladders, nets, and rope swing, promotes the importance of upkeeping individual healthy lifestyle through fitness. A gathering space for residents as they pass their time interacting with other residents, at the same time waiting to pick their kids up from school bus.
CO NS CI O US F U N
FLOW
C OMMU NA L L I V I NG + M UT UA L S UP P O RT
INCOPORATION
THE RED SHELTER a new scale of neighbourhood
Instructors: Zdravko Trivic (Dr) & Tan Jia Xian Group Project: Lee Hong Xuan National University of Singapore Year 3 Semester 1, 2019
Design Write Up: The Red Shelter promotes the concept of mutual support in the setting of a community living. Integrating the idea of awareness and community into the existing fire engine access point with the element of fun and fitness as a form of bridging. Advocating the importance of fire safety and fire fighting instructions and aims to enhance the perception of how a community can see and respond to the emergency together in times of crisis. It is common for people to have the tendency to avoid spaces that are marked as an emergency zone, even if it is an inviting open ground. However, it is exactly when there is an emergency situation, that people should come together to form an undivided spirit against the odds. The idea of having a multipurpose space, which allows the community to come together regardless of safe or emergency times, softens the notion between the ‘restricted’ and ‘public’ area. The Red Shelter will become a bridge between various mental and physical thresholds and aims to forge a sense of identity and pride within the community and promotes residents to take up ownership in shaping a more closed-knitted neighbourhood.
RIPPLES OF THE BRIDGE an extension to allow the inner desire of the local community to be manifested fully
Instructor: Christina Thean Individual Project National University of Singapore Year 3 Semester 2, 2020
Design Write Up: The pedestrian bridge comes with tensile roofing which acted as an unique social element where it gave a sense of togetherness and laced the hard-edged bridge into the fabric of the site with a soft opening towards the beauty of the surroundings.The bridge exists as a form of a physical connector, but as time goes by it has also become this unspoken community space. The design concept is to express the ripple effect of these many possible community spaces from the existing pedestrian bridge and give the existing human activities observed an opportunity to be manifested fully.This project aims to elevate the bridge, from a point of convergence where people only get to cross their paths, to a social connector with pockets of spaces that promotes pro-long interaction. It will enhance and reimagine new social spaces and ways the community can engage each other around tensile structures.The architecture intervention will promote a better sense of dwelling between the community and the river, which was never before, by transforming the bridge into a communal node.
HUMAN ACTIVITIES HUMAN CIRCULATION An photocollage of how the bridge is used on a daily Because of the primary duty of a bridge that connects basis. From the morning working class to the house two banks, the bridge is a strong converging point wives who goes for a walk after their market trips, the for the community and it has slowly forged a strong learning journeys of the kindergarten nearby, animals sense of identity to the site. and wildlife lovers, cyclist and runners. The bridge has been observed to be heavily involved with the lives of the community.
CONCEPT DIAGRAM The relationship between spaces is inspired by the effect of ripples of the water, where one influences another. It will all begin from the “core”, which is the existing bridge, being the starting point of this conversation.
DESIGN STATEMENT The bridge exists as a form of a physical connector, but as time goes by it has also become this unspoken community space. The design concept is to express the ripple effect of these many possible community spaces from the existing pedestrian bridge and give the existing human activities observed an opportunity to be manifested fully.
7.
SECTION A-A
GROUND FLOOR PLAN 1:300 @ A1
EXPANSION OF PUBLIC SPACES FROM THE BRIDGE
PAIRING STUDENTS AND ACTIVE AGING FACILITIES TO THE COMMUNITY
AXONOMETERIC
A
B
B
A
SITE PLAN
ROOF PLAN 1:300 @ A1
STUDENT HOSTEL PLAN (BLK A) 1:300 @ A1
STUDENT HOSTEL PLAN (BLK B) 1:300 @ A1
SECTION B-B
ENLIVEN RIFT a new scale of neighbourhood
Instructor: Tan Beng Kiang (Dr) Individual Project National University of Singapore Year 4 Semester 1, 2020
Design Write Up: The Collectives: Enliven Rift is a post-pandemic residential project that is designed based on resilience through strong ties among the neighbourhood. The project focuses on design thinking for threshold spaces used for well-beingness through hierarchy. It expands on the intermediate zones that carry potential as social incubators that can manifest micro-communities and forge stronger community support networks in the good days.The collective is a framework that guides designing these thresholds through scale with social capital as priority. The Cluster zone will be the main area manifesting the next level of interaction and connection between neighbours, together with the Village and Buddy zone acting as transition zones. This is made as a response to the physical, more so social, distance that a pandemic can have on humans and the more neighbours have to come together during hard times because the community is all under the same roof.
SECTION B-B
SECTION B-B
SECTION B-B
SECTION B-B
ROLLING HILL
an incubation hub for outdoor education
Instructor: Cheah Kok Ming Group Masterplan & Individual Project National University of Singapore Year 5 Semester 1, 2021
Design Write Up: The Rolling Hills is a space that will facilitate icebreakers and team bonding games on the first day/night. The architecture taps upon the expression of juxtaposition through the expressive faceted roof, which resembles the hill that the site never had, and the various connections through curated framing, when campers are able to have focus on both the immediate and future tasks and striking connections with the site through adventure. The design investigates the idea of utilising the existing building on site, as a form of resources, to support the adventure learning. It attempts to instill playability into the fabric of the building by transforming the pitched roof into a playscape. The incubation hub adopts the symbolism of one overcoming mountain summits as the association to help campers be inducted into the atmosphere and mindset of adventure. In the existing SIA building, there are places of different scales which encourage different qualities of activities. The double and triple volume spaces are now equipped with indoor rope and challenge courses, while hosting external vendors to house adventure and recreational related activities below, such as laser or archery tag. The architecture encourages duality of these different activities under the bigger theme of outdoor adventure.
THE MET
a studio space we wish we had
Instructor: Shinya Okuda Group Project: Lee Hong Xuan & Toh Wei Wei National University of Singapore Year 5 Semester 1, 2021
Design Write Up: Designed with the Wall- Slab structure method, The Met @ SDE 2 is a two- storey Mass Timber architecture that sits on top of the current School of Design Building 2. Understanding the short span nature of wall- slab structure, the design goes by a 3.5metres by 8- metres grid, with a series of 2- metres length load bearing walls and a horizontal beam- slab for structural support.With these, 12 compartments are created as studio spaces, 8 on the lower tier and 4 on the upper tier together with a bigger compartment for printing/workshop facilities. Running along the perimeter is a 1.5- metres wide corridor space that connects to both the main lobby core and the west core. And in the middle, a 1- metre MEP corridor is sandwiched between the studio spaces to conceal most of the running mechanical services. With a mix of hybrid cooling for the studio spaces and naturally ventilated space, the pockets of open spaces are created for social interaction, informal group sessions and facilitation of air flow. The courtyard garden at the center helps to create a centrality focus, adding a tinge of life while complimenting the rows of vertical timber walls.
KUKOH TRANSPIRES a community scarfold of opportunities
Instructor: Johannes Widodo (Dr) Individual Project (Thesis) National University of Singapore Year 5, 2021/22
Design Write Up: The thesis started off as an exploration on the relationship between the neighbourhood framework and our national identity. This thesis argues that the neighbourhood framework is unprogressive, and what is set to safeguard and cultivate community identities can have limitations.The Heartland Cracks took on an extreme case of public housing, Chin Swee Neighbourhood, to demonstrate how the 3 issues identified: Overlapping Stakeholders, Hard Edges, and Undiversified Demographics can disconnect a neighbourhood from the grand network. Chin Swee used to be the beacon for many who were once lost and beaten up in life, and this light has over time lost its glow and purpose. Since the start of its digression towards irrelevancy and obsolescence, a big group of its community has also lost their motivation to keep moving forward. These are people who have witnessed the transformation of our Singapore River. Even though some of them might have fallen off, these seniors embodied aspirations and great experience ready to inspire the younger ones. This can be a relay of legacy as they find purpose in contributing to the wilder community towards the end of their life journey. The people staying may be temporary, but the community spirit and identity of the aspirations will not be transient. Kukoh Transpires builds upon the transient nature of the community and aims to overcome the stigmatisation and redefining the role of a rental housing neighbourhood in the modern day society - by establishing a stakeholders symbiosis, to encourage a collaborative relationship between the residents and public. The architecture intervention is an integrated project that houses a start up incubation hub as the anchoring program that drives the rest. Chin Swee will be given a new heartbeat that rekindles the community spirit and instils a sense of identity through togetherness in scaffolding for opportunities and working hard for better lives.
LAI WEI SONG ACADEMIC WORKS