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ARCHITECTURE DEPARTMENT MASTER OF ARCHITECTURE PROGRAMME CHINESE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG 2008-2009 DESIGN REPORT INTERPRETATION OF GROUND MEMORY CHU Lai Nga Eureka May 2009
ARCHITECTURE DEPARTMENT
MASTER OF ARCHITECTURE PROGRAMME
CHINESE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG
2008-2009 DESIGN REPORT
INTERPRETATION OF GROUND MEMORY
CHU Lai Nga Eureka May 2009
•T二
Interpretation of Ground & Memory place of learning on urban topography , 、
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by Eureka Chu Lahnga Advised by Prof. Ho Puay Peng 2008-2009 Habitation Studio CUHK
Thesis Report 12009.06.02
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"The great majority [of a city's inhabitants] may well be more sensitive to a certain street being torn up, or a certain building or home being razed, than to the gravest national, political, or religious events."
Maurice Halbwachs,"Space, and the Collective Memory"
table of contents
thesis statement
thesis abstract & summary of argument
definitions for major themes and terms
background study & site selection
contemporary practices & condition
precedents within & outside architecture
site investigation & analysis
programme description
design concept &'methodology
design development & presentation
bibliography
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thesis statement
Interpretation of Ground & Memory ‘ place of learning on urban topography
Remembrance of the past has taken various forms over the years. Often is the act linked to specific objects in life, from childhood toys, mailboxes, old buildings to the cityscape. In the thesis, I would like to shift the focus to the ground underneath all these objects, Instead of a passive component subjecting to any development, the ground functions for documentation of development over time, and also shapes our experience through visual & physical means. The thesis attempts to interpret the role of the ground condition during city development and search for its meaningful contribution to the local community and future memory.
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thesis abstract & summary of argument
The city is not only a place of appearances, but a place of concealment of the past, culture and memories.
Change is, almost by definition, a constant in every society. During the course of the transformation, the physical environment is altered in various degrees in which, sometimes only fragments or traces of the past are retained. How is the new generation able to understand the past experience?
Very often, the attachment and the connection to the past, to which our everyday life is defined and grounded, are not retained in the scale of a city or a neightbourhood.This remembrance, can then only rely on personal objects and implicit memories of oneself. The fact that the fragments are concealed and hidden in the city deepens the my desire to reveal and bring it to light through architectural means.
Traditions and daily social practices are dynamic in a sense that it changes with the environment and related community. In the case where the past is altered so much or even erased, what has been left slightly altered or ignored during the process of transformation provides an invaluable insight into the specific traces of lifes. Through my study of Central, one of the oldest and most layered districts in Hong Kong, I reconsider the role of everyday life objects and the so-called historical / heritage buildings in this issue. I would argue that these collections in musuem and heritage projects does not necessarily aid the remebrance of the nighbourhood. On the other hand it strengthens the force of change in terms of local culture and habits. With lijtle participation of the original life pattern, I would argue that this idea of pin-pointing specific objects would only further the distance between now and the past.
In this thesis, I try to identify the key which everyday habits are all under its influence. Apart from influencing everyday life habits, this key should shape our experience and in turn nurturing memories without the consciousness of the people.
,memory of everyday path & neighbourhood
thesis abstract
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ypes of thinking when alking about memory
emembering
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magination
recalling past events, experiences, information, etc. remebering is knowledge-bound
systematic (often linear) associa-tion unfolding of ideas, information, im-ages follwing a pre-existing logic
arational (non-linear) association unfolding of ideas, information, images following a free order
The act of singling out for preservation elements of the historical urban landscape and urban experience has itself proved instrumental in accelerating the loss of a deeper sense of memory that might come through the experience of change and even loss.
I -Eric Sandweiss, "Framing urban memory-The changing role of history museum in the city'in "Memory and Architecture"
physical remnant
e.g. the pawn, wanchai
of the told/col lect ion
e.g. reconstruction of shepkipmei public housing flat, hong kong history museum
ordinary artifacts
e.g. collection of ads & movie tickets, hong kong history museum
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.central & sheung wan, 1940 buidlings going along the hill surface contours and new layer ofland'visible
"The city as we imagine it, the soft city of illusion, myth, aspiration, nightmare, is as real, maybe more real, than the hard city one can locate on maps, in statistics, in monographs or urban sociology and demography and architecture."
-Jonathan Raban/The Soft City", 1974:2
remembrance how does the city relate to memory?
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4 definition of major themes and terms
memory -noun, plural -ries. i
1. the mental capacity or faculty of retaining and reviving facts, events, impressions, etc., or of recalling or recognizing
previous experiences. 」 仁 2. the act or fact of retaining and recalling impressions, facts, etc.; remembrance; recollection; to draw from memory.
3. a mental impression retained; a recollection: one's earliest memories,
ground -noun 1. the solid surface of the earth; firm or dry land: to fall to the ground. 2. earth or soil: stony ground. 3. land having an indicated character: rising ground.
change -noun 1. the act or fact of changing; fgct of being changed. -2. a transformation or modification; alteration:They noticed the change in his facial expression. 3 a variation or deviation: a change in the daily routine. 4. the substitution of one thing for another: We finally made the change to an oil-burning furnace. 5 variety or novelty: Let's try a new restaurant for a change. 6. the passing from one place, state, form, or phase to another: a change of seasons; social change.
sense of community
community -noun, plural -ties.
1.a social group of any size whose members reside in a specific locality, share government, and often have a com-mon cultural and historical heritage. 2. a locality inhabited by such a group. -3. a social, religious, occupational, or other group sharing common characteristics or interests and perceived or perceiving itself as distinct in some respect from, the larger society within which it exists (usually prec by the): the business community; the community of scholars. 4. a group of associated nations sharing common interests or a common heritage
attachment -noun
1. an act of attaching or the state of being attached. - ‘ 2. a feeling that binds one to a person, thing, cause, ideal, or the like; devotion; regard: a fond attachment to his cousin; a profound attachment to the cause of peace.
reference: http://dictionary.reference.conn/
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background study & site selection
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diners in SOHO
visited restuarants & bars
view towards other streets from escalator
some deserted important buildings
scattered | accidental
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park with children playground
school uphill
piano lesson studio
identifying places in everyday life
The elements in the imaginary maps of different groups of people ranges vastly as the real life experience of each person is unique. Therefore it would be unreasonable to only design how memories are contained for the local. The issue of learning about the past should be wide ranged for every participant of the city.
parks with children playground
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recognized heritage trail
famous drinks
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selected | scattered | purpose-less
recognized / publicized historical buildings
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sitting out area with grandchildren or maid
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history/events from police quarters
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tangible qualities
order of spaces ( physical & visua l)
density of context
accessibility & porosity
programme
light & shadows
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characters of places
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The ides of remembrance is related to museums, where recalling through direct exhbltion of objects is the primary activity. In this thesis, I would like to question if it is possibel to also evoke memories of daily life without the consciousness of looking at actifacts.
Should it be possible to design spaces which memory recalling is not the primary activity, but also interact with other daily life habits through the habitual uses of places.
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intangible qualities
walking experience
perception of sky
noise & sound
perception of time
privacy
memory work & the city What is the; 丨 of memory?
2. How does space function in the process of memory formation? 3, How is memory related to the city and place? 4. How change is reflected in the city? 5, What is the response of people toward change and memories?
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perception of privacy . The idea of privacy varies in different programmes. This perception does not only stem from the spatial configuration of space, i.e. the sense of protection / enclosure, but is also affected by the activity and the associated human flow and where these people are from.
public access market for everyday life
place of worship
< public / easily accessible
alleys through plot
public parks < J -
•place of learning
home
•common spaces /
time of encounter
Apart from the physical setting, time of encounter and the degree of repetition change the content and nature of the memory formed. For instance, shopping spaces emphasize on the objects and products whereas longer lingering or even settlement causes help to accumulate images and acquire orders of spaces.
place of exhibition & museums
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social network
place of exchange place of exchange for everyday life
residential
I place of learning long / repetition
length of duration oflingc
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6 act of remembrance in precedents within & outside architecture
Remembrance of the past has taken various forms in different disciplines. However, the idea of remembrance has often been linked to direct reconstruction. Retaining of facades and collection of objects for re-creation of scenarios without further abstraction and interpretation to me is not to stage memory but to confine it, The examples below comes from arts and architecture, which all demonstrated different stragtegies in the act of remembrance.
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Writing on the Wall, Berlin, Shimon Attie
process of remembrance
replica of scenarios
direct recall
object of remembrance
non-existent: people
strategy
memory as distant images pulled to present
feedback of recipient
flashing up of implicit memories
way recalling
window towards the past
Writing on the Wall, Berlin, Shimon Attie
process of remembrance
replica of scenarios
direct recall
object of remembrance
non-existent: people
strategy
memory as distant images pulled to present
feedback of recipient
flashing up of implicit memories
abstraction of memor ies
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Blue House, Wanchai, Hong Kong process of remembrance
fragmented traces of life
open to private readings to members or communit object of remembrance
strategy
objects of everyday life
feedback of recipient
constitute of stratum of everyday life flashing up of implicit memories without realising
external impy t is l imited
BASIC MAP OF THE NEW PLAN
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Strategy of memory, Portugal, Alvaro Siza
process of remembrance
re-emphasis local characters & view
open all members of the community
object of remembrance
voids spaces around the destroyed buildings
strategy ‘
re-create & demarcate voids and passages
feedback of recipient
remember on site
remember the destroyed through the new
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site investigation
Choosing the site right opposite to the former police quarters is no coincidence.The established and recognized history and archaeology values contrasts greatly with the diminishing everyday life and environment, which is likely to be torn down with no regards of what have ever happened between the lanes and alleys. Through this investigation, I would like to identify the spatial elements and problems in the site, which could In turn inform the design direction.
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i network paths/connections/ porosity / permeability
Casting memories on oneself does not necessarily require external stimuli. What often leave memory are experiences of which we have little awareness of. Acquiring traditions and social normative life patterns are essential in shaping one's identity, yet very often the memories of such are images with details in gray.
When the community undergoes transformation, especially during massive changes, apart from the erasure of the physical environment, traditions and life styles are altered as they relate to the setting and characteristic of the place. When new development has little or even no traces of the past, remembrance becomes difficult. .
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rountines/ habits social anchors (trees?... bench?) / place of exchange/walking route / understanding of privacy
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place characters
dealing with the terrain ‘
Terrain is one of the difficutlies and also opportunity for architecture. In a dense city like Hong Kong, instead of houses running along contours and forms another layer of hill surface, very often there is the combination of grid and contour in order to fulfil the density rquirement.
Terraces are one of the features which responds to the terrain and the urge for open space. The study here takes a few examples from Hong Koi development
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summary of site investigation, site mapping Central
8 programme description
Central is an place of vast programme diversity. The site chosen situates between vibrant SOHO activities and a quiet residential area. Facing the Former Hollywood Road Police Married Quarters has suggested that the site is potentially a tourist spot because of the will-be creative industries. The programme is therefore investigated with the above mentioned existing condition and also the linkage to the thesis arguement of bring up the past.
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programme & activity investigation
Whenever remembrance is mentioned, the corresponding programme is often related to museums, where recalling through artifacts from fixed past is the primary activity. In this thesis, I would like to question the possibility to take memories further in exercising its reasoning and imagination power, which is regenerative and open.
lecture theatre open gallery map .-^rchive school 「( source centre temporary exhibition bookstore
programme responding to issue
1. What kinds of activity in daily life engages memory? History / learning / social activities /... .
2. How does the place help to promote the atmospher while not feeling up with tense remembrance? As organization tool / as imaging elements / as backdrops / secondary recalling
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3. What kind of people should be involved in the process of remembering? Children (future projection) / elderly (input) / visitor (as explorer) / authority (manage but not confining memories)
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•oarchive/gallery maps/photography/. . .
school / market / open space / event (festive) space connection with memories + future inspirations with events
gathering for visitors+local / market / resource centre memory + idea exchange./ old & new
leisure for local people playground / bookstore
private artifacts / other memory systems
condition
incomplete / diminishing
representation
artifacts museums / precedents / memorial
network paths / connections / porosity / permeability
process of connecting to the past
direct forceful recall ！
through daily life habits and uses of spaces
posed / official social life open space / programme diversity / sense of neighbourhood / privacy
authorized community buildings / open spaces playground / school / parks
private memories
rountines & rituals developed through years
non-existence
private / solitude
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9 preliminary design experiments
Paths and staircases were the primary distinctive charcteristics of the site. To summarise it, the idea of permeability within the lot for the local neighbourhood is the main driving concept of the design.
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on the same spatial configuration
on-going/changing perceptions
everyday life
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liberate from frozen moments
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design objective exhibit of another life pattern existed
Exhibiting this life pattern does not essentially mean complete re-constuction of the past environment, simply because it is irrational and impossible to re-create the whole social network and cultural background of the past. However, the revealing of spatial qualities of the once lived environment can help with recalling and foreseeing the future.
intersect with broader identity in history
In view of the bigger context, the intersection of local everyday life with grave historical moments and events give a complete picture of the place's past.
re-think the cost of development overtime
learning of topography / urban form / human interaction with topography
The land being neglected in recent years of developments and its topography should be identified and taught for the design & planning and the children in the future.
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linkage of communal programme | memory inte-grated along the path
introducing visitors to wan-der into fabrics of the past from SOHO common open spaces for festivals of locals & play-ground for children
strategy 1 : function/ activity / people
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separated institutes | segre-gate visitor and local create the difference of privacy by means of programme
open spaces for different groups of people
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option 1 network of paths
intersection of paths with heritage trail, leading into the site
demarcate paths for SOHO visitors to enter
nodes > interaction programmes between local & visitors
strategy 2 : pathways & linkage i primary spaces of evoking
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option 2 branching designated paths which penetrates & branches out
fragmented connection ( visually connected but not walkable)
common/shared pro-gramme along same main pathway
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• study models during fall term 2008 (from left to right) paths along the contour; paths tranformed: terraces and coutyards; little differentiation of paths: fragments & scattered masses
’" lodel at 1:500 of the site
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• view investigation - visual experience on the journey uphill (below)/ downhill (above)
Apart form the physical alignment of paths on plans, the idea ofacsending and descending was also in-vestigated. Currently in Central, besides the Escalator system and other forms of transportation, the main acsending paths are through staircases and sloped paths. To me the sense of ascending is stronger when one sees the massive ground surface in view. On the other hand, the focus of view is shifted to the objects above ground.Therefore to carry to my design, 1 would like to investigate the views during a joyful acsending experience in my site.
visual experience on the journey uphill / downhill
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study models at 1:5001 in search of design strategy
(from left to right) little definition of paths ； two separated sites of different identities; paths tranformed: terraces & courtyards
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study models at 1:5001 spatial relationship & paths studies
(from left to right) extension of paths ； paths as the focus; paths tranformed: terraces & courtyards
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study sectional models at 1:5001 spatial relationship between levels
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partial study models at 1:2001 spatial relationship within slices of section (above from left to right) uphill & downhill ； acsending & descending extended to courtyard; (below) staircases more than circulation: basic programme idea
partial study models at 1:2001 spatial relationship within slices of section (from left to right) uphill & downhill ； acsending & descending extended to courtyard; staircases more than circulation
conceptual montage | wondering around on the same ground surface activities directly linked to experience of the topography
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summary of site investigation (from left to right) site issues documented ； interaction between people, programme and the site
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Between everyday life & imagination - memory
The beauty of memory does not come from the genuine record of things, but from the fragments of experi-ence together with an input of imagination from each individual. Therefore it would be limited to pResume that memory in design means re-construction. To me memory of a place opens up a field of imagination, which connect the past to the future, through interpretation and abstraction.
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presentation models at 1:2001 local art institute & kindergarten (from left to right) art institute with public accessible courtyard ； kindergarten with protected courtyard next to old fabric
plans I blending in to the fabric grain
(from left to right) plan at level + 6.5 above stauton street ； plan at level 十 10.1 aove stauton street
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presentation models at 1:2001 local art institute (left) kindergarten & community programmes
view in kituierqarlen | stairs os event 聊 c e
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Key Readings The city of collective memory: its historical imagery and architectural entertainments M. Christine Boyer. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, c1994.
A sense of place, a sense of time Jackson, John Brinckerhoff, New Haven: Yale University Press, c1994.
Remembering the personal past: descriptions of autobiographical memory Ross, Bruce M. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991.
The social logic of space Bill Hillier, Julienne Hanson. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1984.
Theorizing a new agenda for architecture: an anthology of architectural theory 1965-1995 Kate Nesbitt, editor. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, c1996. The Pleasure of Architecture (1977) / Bernard Tschumi The Phenomenon of Place (1976) / Christian Norberg-Schuiz Heidegger's Thinking on Architecture,(1983) / Christian Norberg-SchuIz
The image of the city Lynch, Kevin, 1918-Cambridge [Mass.]: M.l.T. Press, 1964.
Memory and Architecture Edited by Eleni Bastea Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2004.
bibliography
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