Zenin Adrian

Debating modern Indonesian architecture

2008-01-09T03:00:00.001-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday December 23, 2007

Indonesia is always at the crossroads between cultures and ideas. On one hand, we have our own diverse cultures. On the other hand, there are modern ideas which always try to negotiate the boundaries.

Architecture is not only a product of cultures, but it is also a product of thoughts and ideas. Therefore, Indonesian architecture is constantly a crossroads between traditional locality and modernity. This tension between the two elements sparked an endless debate which characterized the Indonesian modern architecture.

One important issue that the Tension-Span exhibition at Erasmus Huis, Jakarta, deals with is the process towards the modern Indonesian architecture. This is closely related to the establishment of a modern Indonesian society.

According to the curator of the exhibition, Amir Sidharta, the National Awakening of 1908 and the Youth Pledge of 1928 serve as the milestones as Indonesia's modern architecture emerged parallel with these two events.

The exhibition focused on historical aspects of the debate without elaborately investigating how the exhibited architectural works are canonical and plays important role on the debate. It reminds us how our modern architecture represents the development of our modern society.

The debate itself started as criticism towards Dutch East Indies architecture which was dominated by spiritless reproduction of Neo-Hellenism works, offered by PAJ Moojen in 1907. After that, there was tension between two factions of Dutch architects, one with disregard to local context and the other with greater attention to localities (communities, environment, technologies and cultures).

After the nation's independence, Soekarno, who was trained as an architect, envisioned on a modern architectural discourse which could convey a national Indonesian characteristic. However, his interest toward Modernism was mostly based on visual aesthetics and utopian ideas rather than efficient productivity or those of technical aspects.

The Conefo Complex (now the DPR/MPR building) is the best example for the articulation of his vision. The thin shell structure system symbolized technological advancements at that time, which represented the fundamental idea of modernity in Indonesia.

Later in the 1960s, a group of young architects called ATAP, continued the debate. They rejected the idea that Indonesian architecture can be characterized through applying traditional forms.

The debate continued on to the later generations, as it experienced different challenge from the rise of domestic economy in 1970s and economic liberalization in the second half of 1980s.

Private enterprises demanded profit-oriented architecture as opposed to providing comfortable working or living environment. By the late 1980s, some recent graduates in architecture formed a group called Forum Arsitek Muda Indonesia (Forum for the Young Indonesian Architects).

At that time, the local and global tension was reduced to visual issues, as reflected to their visually compelling works that attracted local and global media attention. Their publicity achievement accelerated their dominance within Indonesia's architecture field and inspired younger generation of architects.

Today, there are more informal groups of young architects who continue on the debate across Indonesia. The current debate also produced young architects with different approaches toward solving various different issues whether technical, economical or even social.

The Tension-Span exhibition seemed too condensed into such a small space while the amount of knowledge exceeded the available exhibition panels. This historically focused exhibition should be perceived as the beginning of more elaborate upcoming series.

There should be more exhibitions on how the design of the exhibited buildings are canonical and contributed to this endless debate of modern Indonesian architecture so people who are unfamiliar with architecture could easily get into the debate and understand what has been going through Indonesian architects' minds for 100 years.

Captions:

Caption 01: Today's visually compelling contemporary Indonesian architecture as represented by Gedung 28, Jakarta

Caption 02: The model of Villa Isola, Bandung represents the Western-oriented faction in the early debate of modern Indonesian architecture

Caption 03: The Canefo complex building (now the DPR/MPR building) articulates the vision of modern Indonesian society.

All images are by Zenin Adrian

Reinventing the garden house

2008-01-09T02:11:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday December 16, 2007

During the property boom and development of satellite cities on the outskirts of Jakarta during the 80s and 90s, there was a huge market demand for garden houses and country-style houses in the real estate industry.

Parallel with aggressive planning of new highways and toll roads, people would go further away from the city center in pursuance of their dream (and affordable) homes. The mindset was: the further you are away from the city, the bigger the lawn you can afford.

However, the economic crisis played a role in taking away those dreams. Road network development could not keep up with the vast property development. Traffic congestion killed the enjoyment of having the garden houses. For people earning their living in the city center, they could waste a third to a quarter of their day stuck in the traffic.

Today, living in close proximity to the city center is much more desirable for a lot of people. They are willing to live on a much smaller urban lot.

Generally, the concept of the garden house simply meant having a huge lawn in the backyard without exploring the relationship between indoor and outdoor space. Conceptually, the house was more introvert and separated from the exterior.

Some architects offered interesting modern approaches in re-inventing the garden house concept for urban application. Adi Purnomo blurred the boundary between the house and landscape in his works in Ciganjur and Jl. Tangkuban Perahu, Jakarta. Both houses elaborately exercise the relationship of interior and exterior spaces.

The Ciganjur house reversed the concept "house in the garden" to "garden in the house" by converting the whole lot into a single house experience. It is a modern interpretation of the compound house concept in Balinese architecture where the rooms are not contained in a single building but distributed throughout the lot.

The house itself employs a simple house form with minimal decoration. Outdoor spaces become the interior of the house, where lush softscape is the main decoration element. Living rooms also serve as terraces to maximize enjoyment of the landscape.

The house at Jl. Tangkuban Perahu took a different direction. While the house maintains the image of a single house, it also integrates the landscape in an unprecedented way. Not only the garden is stacked and interwoven with the house, but also became the fa‡ade.

The vertical gardens create the sense of privacy while allowing the house to breathe. The main stairway has a dual function that performs as seating for any social event.

This intimate relationship between the landscape and the house provides good natural cross ventilation and day lighting. It also increases the water retention ability of the house, so it dramatically reduces excess water out to the surrounding neighborhood.

Essentially, in designing a dwelling, aesthetic consideration is becoming less important. The interrelationship between spaces and its contribution to the environment are more valuable. Although both of these houses are definitely not bug-free, but the experience of tropical living is maximized

Captions:

Caption 01: One of the living rooms also serves as a terrace

Caption 02: From the entrance view, the Ciganjur house consists of different layers of indoor and outdoor spaces

Caption 03: The house on Jl. Tangkuban Perahu has vertical gardens

Caption 04: The stairway has a dual function and also serves as seating for social events or performances

Caption 05: Operable extra-large transparent windows still maintain the connection with the landscape

All images are courtesy of Adi Purnomo

Entering the epicenter

2008-01-09T01:59:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday December 9, 2007

At this moment, Rasuna Epicentrum is probably one of the most ambitious superblock developments in Jakarta, on a parallel with other mixed-use areas like the Sudirman Central Business District and Mega Kuningan. I consider the mixed-use development concept to be the most appropriate for living in the city center.

The concept abandons the ancient zoning separations of commercial and residential, which play a major role in generating vehicle traffic. Some urban planners believe that the mixed-use concept can help reduce our carbon footprint.

In order to succeed, the complex should generate more pedestrian traffic because of the close proximity between living spaces and workplaces, rather than motorized vehicle traffic to avoid congestion. A mass transportation hub should be connected with the pedestrian network of the complex.

Designed by Urbane, a Bandung-based architectural design office, the entrance gate of the Rasuna Epicentrum complex takes a whole different approach to traditional gate design, emphasizing accessibility and the resurfacing of the landscape.

The resurfacing strategy, which involves applying different paving materials for various purposes, has two important tasks: to slow down motorized traffic and to create a more pleasant sidewalk. Rough paving stones are used to reduce the speed of the motorists. The sidewalk is paved with a similar but finer texture to the road and leveled with the road rather than being raised, so it appears there is only slight difference between the road and the sidewalk. In my opinion, this gesture is a part of the effort of converting the gate area to a square-like place that is more pedestrian friendly.

However, some minor details have to come to my attention. The area is also paved with crisscrossing lines which have no meaning when viewed from the street level. We can only see and understand how those lines are interconnected with one another when we view them from above.

Those lines are set in a highly complex and illogical pattern, and consequently it is obvious that some of the construction workers are still struggling to finish laying it out.

I wish that the pattern was not excessively decorative and that it did not discard its functional values. The pattern could have been used to define pathways for pedestrians and motorists.

In most cities in Japan, pedestrian markings with extruded surface textures are used to increase accessibility by creating paths for the blind. At Rasuna Epicentrum, if a blind person tried to follow the interweaving path, he or she would bump into a light pole or end up in the middle of the street.

I must commend Rasuna Epicentrum's efforts in their approach for improving pedestrian environment in the area. I have been enjoying that short stretch of the road, and hopefully the effort will continue into the whole new complex and become a prototype for similar development in other areas. The entrance gate also represents how improving public amenities can be accomplished through collaboration with the private sector.

Captions:

Image 01 The entrance gate area is viewed from the pedestrian bridge.

Image 02 Disconnected path on the sidewalk.

Image 03 Criscrossing lines are illogical when viewed from the street level.

All images are by Zenin Adrian

An environmentally friendly past

2008-01-09T01:41:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday December 2, 2007

Oil prices have escalated dramatically in the last few months and some people harbor concerns this will lead to the next energy crisis in the very near future.

And building and construction operations account for 40 percent of energy consumption and is responsible for 33 percent of carbon dioxide emissions worldwide.

But this sector will suffer from the impact of the crisis -- in addition to the effects the industry will see from global warming.

Architects and engineers are at the frontline of the building, construction and operation industry and are responsible for making buildings more energy efficient.

In some countries in Europe, Asia, Australia and North America, there have been growing efforts to promote environmentally friendly building practices -- popularly known as green building.

One focus is to reduce energy loads by optimizing heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems.

Internationally, there are growing numbers of new building designs that comply with this effort.

New facade designs are today equipped with shading devices in order to reduce interior heat from direct sunlight.

In Jakarta's past, a growing interest in design driven by efforts to minimize energy load or to reduce the need for air conditioning (AC) is evident in some buildings on the main street of Jakarta.

Cheap energy costs and our dependency on AC units have provided shortcuts to achieve interior thermal comfort.

Glass cladding technology has preceded design exploration in solar shading devices.

Images shown here include traces of past efforts made toward energy efficiency.

All of them are interesting patterns, characterized by modern tropical building facade designs.

These familiar patterns have a significant role in cooling the building's outer skin layer and contribute to lowering the energy load for air conditioning needs.

The first image show stainless steel patterns from the Istiqlal Mosque in Jakarta.

Built in the 60s, the design still looks contemporary.

Designed by the late F. Silaban, the mosque shows early efforts in contextualizing modern buildings with a tropical climate.

Silaban also was responsible for the facade design of the Bank Indonesia Building on Jl. MH Thamrin, shown here in image 2.

Both building's facades represent the movement toward environmental concern in Indonesian architecture.

Not too far from the Bank Indonesia building, lies the dusty and old United Nation Building.

They comprise cellular louvers designed with a slanted profile.

These cells enclose the entire building and provide the impression of one single object.

Similarly, the S. Widjojo Center building on Jl. Jend. Sudirman employs deeper shading devices for the facade skin.

The envelope's design created a more distinct and unique look compared to other adjacent buildings.

The functional pattern produced an elegant image and helped save the environment.

These buildings show us past efforts made to create energy efficient building designs and they become more and more relevant with today's environment crisis and escalating energy costs.

It is time for us to rethink and to learn from the past.

Captions:

Image 01 The Istiqlal Mosque, Jakarta.

Image 02 Bank Indonesia Building on Jalan Sudirman.

Image 03 Widjojo Center Building.

All images are by Zenin Adrian

Revisiting local architecture after disasters

2008-01-09T01:19:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday November 25, 2007

It has been a more than year since the earth shook for 58 seconds in Central Java, shattering thousands of lives in the province and Yogyakarta.

Many people were killed or seriously injured by falling brick walls in their own homes, which had been built with traditional techniques and did not have the engineering necessary to withstand an earthquake.

After more than a year of reconstruction, residents are slowly getting back on their feet. Most of the new houses were constructed collectively by local communities, under the supervision of students, foreign consultants, architects and engineers.

A lot of the built houses used a design provided by local government through their free building permit program, while other housing types were a result of new construction techniques.

Eko Prawoto was one of the many architects that were involved in the reconstruction effort. His design was driven merely to save costs and try to salvage as many building materials as possible from the former houses.

Distributed funds from the government were barely enough to build the core houses, so Eko designed the basic structure and roofing system, derived from traditional pitch roof form, while the rest of the houses were enclosed by salvaged materials. Consequently, each of his houses is personalized and has its own distinct characteristics generated by variations in door and window components.

The reconstruction effort can also be seen as an opportunity to introduce a new construction system that is more robust and resistant to earthquakes. Holcim Indonesia, through its Solusi Rumah program, introduced their new interlocking concrete brick system, which radically reduces wood usage for concrete formworks and speeds up the construction process. The system was widely used to build public facilities such as schools, community centers, public bathrooms and even small housing projects.

While the system simplifies the construction technique, Holcim Indonesia provided an extensive training program for construction workers in order to be assured of its correct application. The modular concrete brick system requires the building to be designed in specific 15 x 15 centimeter modules to maintain its effectiveness and is easily adapted to local house design.

However, not all the houses built within the relief effort were designed to blend with vernacular architectural values. The new housing complex built by the Domes for the World group went in a completely different direction. The houses are constructed in a dome form, similar to the igloos of the Inuit, and are equipped with conventional door and window systems and also skylight to allow natural interior illumination.

Although the geometry of the dome is structurally robust for earthquake resistance, these domes do not accommodate the key parameters for tropical housing design, where the openings need to be fully shaded, and a ventilated roof. Complaints from the present tenants about higher indoor temperature are predictable. On top of that, the whole dome complex appears peculiar and unrelated to the adjacent traditional house design.

On the whole, providing new homes in a recovery effort is always a complex issue. There is no such thing as a single solution. Houses have to be designed with local considerations and adaptable for customization or personalization. Community-based participation in most reconstruction effort plays a key role so that the new houses can be accepted and satisfy the beneficiaries.

Captions:

Image 01 & 02: Eko Prawoto designed a basic structural frame and traditional roofing. His design solution allowed communities to reuse salvaged windows and doors from their former houses.

Image 03 & 04: A school constructed in the modular interlocking concrete brick system

Image 05: A bright white dome complex.

All images are by Zenin Adrian

The green domes of power

2007-12-16T10:17:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday November 18, 2007

As part of the generation who shared the euphoria of 1998’s student occupation of the DPR/MPR building at Jl. Jend. Gatot Subroto, I found there is an awkward feeling when I saw the design of the gate of our parliament building.

The new gate replaced the old design which has been fixed for so many times after going through numerous rough protest rallies. The new design looks very much stronger as a result of the additional vertical structure to sustain lateral forces, in other words, any attempt to shove it down. It looks daunting enough to keep unwanted parties from entering the complex.

The things that draw my attention from the new gate are the mini green domes on top of the pillars. They were painted mimicking the main dome of the DPR/MPR building. The designer of the gate would probably intend to contextualize the new gate with the main building.

However, such gesture could lead to completely different interpretation. Although the gates are meant to keep unwanted people out of the complex, they also meant to maintain the huge gap between it and the main building. Those mini domes could be interpreted literally as the direct representation of the DPR/MPR council where it reinforces the idea that the public, in the event of a rally, do not have to enter the main building. They can just convey their message towards the gate, which I am assuming that is not the initial intention.

On the contrary, the Reichstag, the parliament building in Berlin, Germany, offers completely different gesticulation. The building opens its doors for public visitation. Renovated in 199x by Foster and Partners, a London based internationally recognized architecture firm, the Reichstag allows the public to witness how the parliament is performing their duties.

The interior circulation flow of the building was design to accommodate separate public viewing without conflicting with the daily activities of the parliament members. The public visitors can even observe the council’s meeting sessions from the above. They could also occupies the roof and enjoy Berlin’s scenery.

The Reichstag is equipped with a very complex reflective mirror system within its transparent dome. The mirror system is computerized and programmed to follow the sun angle and reflect sunlight to indirectly illuminate the main meeting hall. This system minimizes the need for artificial lighting and reduces the energy load. This complex system is also available for public viewing and becomes one of the attractions for visitors.

In essence, the Reichstag shows how it embraces two fundamental aspects in the current issues, democracy and saving the environment. In my opinion, The DPR/MPR building should learn from the Reichstag and constantly contextualize its role in the democracy. Securing the DPR/MPR building is not about keeping the commoners from disturbing the parliament members, but it is about having those two parties coexist under one roof. Parliament building should represents how idealism is applied in our daily lives as the citizen of this beloved country.

Captions:

Image 01 The mini domes on top of the gate of the DPR/MPR building

Image 02 Visitors can observe the parliament meeting sessions in the Reichstag.

Image 03 The complex mirror system can react to the sun movement and indirectly illuminate the interior.

All images are by Zenin Adrian

The luxurious geometry of 'scrapers

2007-12-16T10:06:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday November 11, 2007

In the last few decades, architects have been liberated from the constraints of the traditional drawing board and flat-plane geometry.

Younger generations of architects have more access to the Computer Aided Design (CAD) programs and have been using it to its full extent generating more geometrically complex design.

Currently, the global trend of skyscraper design has shifted from a straight extrusion of primitive shape to a more complex three dimensional shape. Concurrent with the advancement of CAD software, a complex building shape is more feasible to realize.

However, such vast advancement in complex building form design has to be confronted with the reality of fabrication. All curvy shapes have to be fabricated from available flat building materials in the market. In order to achieve a smooth curved surface, it has to be segmented and the covering panels have to be cut into specific sizes.

Surfaces with one-directional curving can be constructed out of the same panel size with little variations. Other types of more complex curved surfaces, such as a bi-directional curving surface, requires a higher degree of variations for the paneling sizes.

Such variations also mean more material waste and higher cost. That is why a complex building shape is usually applied on high budget construction such as art museums, galleries or privately owned office towers and considered as luxurious geometry.

Interestingly, the new building for the Directorate General of Higher Education (DIKTI), Ministry of National Education, located at Jl. Pintu Satu Senayan, Jakarta, has demonstrated that such extravagance can be applied to a government office building. Designed by Atelier 6, a Jakarta based architecture firm, the building's unique facade consists of several curving surfaces, which require fine variations for the cladding panels or glasses.

In my opinion, this matter raised an important issue of justifying such luxury. I could not think any functional justifications of the curved facade other than symbolic ones.

Symbolic form in architecture design was a common practice during the New Order era, for example Keong Emas Theater at Taman Mini Indonesia Indah or the phallic tower for the Ministry of Culture and Tourism building at Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat.

On the other hand, Menara Satrio, a new office tower in Jl. Prof. Dr. Satrio has applied a simple strategy in generating the effect of a curving skyscraper.

The recently completed office building, designed by Arquitectonica, a US based architecture design firm, manipulated the rectangular shape simply by chamfering each of the four corners.

The design strategy created a simpler geometry than that of the DIKTI building and minimizes the variations for the fabrication of the glass panels.

I must commend Menara Satrio for smartly and efficiently revisiting the rectangular skyscraper design. Menara Satrio has shown that luxury and elegance can be achieved with a simpler geometry -- and without breaking the bank. The extravagant geometry of symbolism-driven architecture as shown by the DIKTI building does not reflect functionality and contradicts good governance. The government should have expressed more modesty and practicality in constructing their office buildings.

Caption 1: The DIKTI building as viewed from Jl. Sudirman. Its unique structure consists of several curving surfaces

Caption 2: Menara Satrio manipulated the rectangular shape simply by chamfering each of the four corners

All images are by Zenin Adrian

Sculptural Exhibition Space Promotes Local Designers

2007-12-14T21:34:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday November 4, 2007

In the last few years, the discourse of exporting our intellectual commodities has been emerging within the design community. Globalization provided a whole new playground for local designers where global competition is inevitable.

At this moment, the Indonesian creative industry is still struggling for international recognition -- specifically in architecture design, where traditional style is still dominating the international perspective on Indonesian design. To some contemporary architect, this view represents inferiority of Indonesian creative industry and provides weak ground for local designers to compete globally.

However, the Indonesian Trade Show which was held from October 23rd to October 27th, 2007 at the Jakarta Fairground in Kemayoran provide a whole different approach to presenting Indonesian creative products, as well as exhibition design to the public. The trade show was packaged in an unconventional manner.

Traditionally, in a lot of commercial exhibitions in Indonesia, every exhibition booth competes to be distinct by showing unique and attractive design. Each booth is confined in a fixed module and designed specifically to sell each products. In a whole, the entire exhibition would look more like a circus than a market place.

Andra Matin took a whole new design approach. Recognized as one of the 101 of the world's most exciting new architects by the Wallpaper* magazine, Andra Matin gave a much richer spatial experience to the whole show, comparable to a modern art museum. The exhibition took place in the recently built D2 hall at the Jakarta Fairground complex.

By occupying a very large, hangar-like space, Andra had the opportunity of creating a three-story interior structure. He maintains the quality of the great hall by not totally enclosing it with the additional floor spaces. The created space is more sculptural than commercial.

Entering the exhibition space, he guided the visitor to ascend through a long and tapered stepped corridor to reach the top floor as the beginning of the whole experience. From that point, the visitor would gradually descend through the exhibition.

Circulation flow is designed not only to allow visitor to view the exhibition in a continuous way but also reveal the space beneath, so the visitors would get a glimpse of the overall show while experiencing the show.

The predominantly black interior with black fabric covering the hall's interior side, provided a more focused environment for the trade products. Each product is exhibited without further set up, some of them even just placed their products on the floor. Personally, each item appeared more like an art object than a commercial product.

I believe in order to encourage our local creative commodities, we need a more permanent exhibition space similar to the trade show exhibition space or even like the Cooper Hewitt's National Design Museum in New York, USA.

Andra Matin's skillful space manipulation shows us that the creative industry needs to receive higher appreciation. In fact, all the products exhibited in the show have already received international appreciation, but are still lacking in local recognition -- an interesting phenomena that challenges our foreign brand oriented society.

Caption 1: he visitors ascend through a long and tapered stepped corridor to reach the top floor as the beginning of the whole experience.

Caption 2:Circulation flow is designed not only to allow visitor to view the exhibition in a continuous flow but also reveal the space beneath.

Caption 3: The predominantly black interior provides a more focused environment for the trade products

Caption 4: Each product appears more like an art object than a commercial product.

All images are by Zenin Adrian

Providing unbiased setting for haute cuisine

2007-12-14T06:46:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday October 28, 2007

One recurring dilemma my wife and I have to cope with every time we want to have a dining experience is how we decide between good food and good place. Most of the time those two things do not go together. We can have fantastic food in a worst place on earth or dine in a fabulous place with mediocre cuisine.

Perhaps the challenge for Anouska Hempel, an internationally renowned London based interior designer, in designing the SHY restaurant is to provide an astonishing interior without competing with the food. Rather than overly decorated the restaurant, her personal approach is more mental than physical. She focuses in engaging three main issues: scale, enclosure and consistency.

Starting from the entrance corridor, our sense of scale is being manipulated here. As we enter the main dining area through the narrow corridor, we will slightly ascend through a series of wide steps, and descend as we enter the dining areas. This technique gives a compression in space and provides a simply elegant introduction for the dining areas. So it will feel dramatically higher.

The SHY’s dining area is divided into four different parts: one large dining space that can be sub divided and enclosed into smaller private dining, two private areas and one relaxed lounge area.

Hempel creates the sense of privacy of each division simply through extensive use of the vertical screen. Privacy is achieved by exploiting the effect created by the physical property of the vertical screen, where it becomes transparent when viewed perpendicularly and opaque when viewed sideways or on an angle relative to the screen surface.

This effect is similar to an optical illusion called the moiré phenomenon. An illusion created by superimposing two different sets of parallel lines differing in relative size, angle or spacing.

Its application is considered as the oldest trick in the book and has been used by designers as a simple yet effective tool to create physical separation while maintaining limited visual connection.

According to Karen Kwek, SHY’s communication officer, the main design direction is not to overshadow the food’s presentation. To that end, Hempel maintains the applied materials by limiting color palette into three colors: black, white and celadon (grayish light green).

I am deeply convinced that the predominantly black interiors, with different finishes and effects for each elements such as the floorings, seating, tables and the screens, has successfully create an unbiased setting for any activities or events at SHY. The limited color palette has allowed Hempel to focus and exploit the physical quality of each element.

Overall, the key ingredient to Hempel’s sophisticated interior is through proper understanding of characteristic of the materials and the effect it has created. The food can be self represented without distraction from other interior elements and people can be their selves in a tranquil atmosphere.

Captions:

Picture 01 The raised corridor enhanced the sense of different scale.

Picture 02 Extensive use of the screen creates division while maintaining visual connection.

Picture 03 Main dining space is flexible to be sub divided or re arranged for different events.

Picture 04 The food can be self represented without distraction from other interior elements and people can be their selves in a tranquil atmosphere.

All images are courtesy of SHY

The Papilion: Effortless elegance through transparency

2007-12-14T06:29:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday October 21, 2007

Transparency has been an old obsession for numerous architects throughout the course of modern architecture. Since the beginning of the massive application of glass to construction, people have seemed to be mystified by its transparent quality and incredible strength.

One phenomenon which results from the physical property of a glass surface is how it reacts to light. If you view a glass structure from the outside, it is opaque and highly reflective when it is exposed to daylight.

At night, when it is lit from the inside, it becomes totally transparent. And this phenomenon has been the object of exploration of many architects.

However, such transparency comes with additional unwanted feature. When sunlight hits a glass surface, it only reflects the light ray not the heat ray. The process produces a heat build-up inside which requires a much greater effort to cool the interior of the building.

However, this problem has been resolved by the Papilion building, located on Jl. Kemang Raya, Jakarta. Designed by D-Associates, a Jakarta based architecture design office, it is a low-rise four-story simple, yet sophisticated structure, home to high-end boutiques and restaurants.

The facade utilizes a double layer of glass which creates air space between the glass layers. This acts as a thermal barrier, keeping the heat build-up contained in this relatively narrow space.

The heat generates a pressure difference between the top and bottom of the air space resulting in buoyancy force -- or upward force -- popularly known as the stack effect, where the hot air will rise and escape through the aluminum louver at the top of the glass façade beneath the canopy. (Picture 01)

This strategy significantly helps reduce the energy load required to cool the building's interior, while maintaining its transparent quality.

According to the principal architect, Gregorius Supi Yolodi, transparency was the main design strategy utilized to reduce the bulkiness of the building. The other design tool is the large canopy above the glass fa‡ade which has two functions: to shade the glass and to virtually reduce the overall height of the building.

I admire the Papilion for its effortless elegance. Contradictory to other significant commercial buildings along Jl. Kemang Raya, the Papilion blends with its surroundings through its reflective fa‡ade. The canopy works well in scaling down the building to friendlier size.

The Papilion also engages the public domain by opening up the first floor to pedestrians. Wheelchair access is provided elegantly next to the main entrance -- a rare find in Jakarta.

However, good intentions cannot be entirely welcomed by city officials. Yolodi said that the city rejects his proposal to improve the pedestrian pathway on the side street.

Overall, the Papilion shows that, with a little creative engineering, transparent glass buildings can indeed exist in this city's hot climate.

Our fascination with transparency can be fulfilled with thoughtful design and elegance can be achieved through understanding the environment.

All images are courtesy of D-Associates

The blank façades of the Ritz Carlton diminish the hotel image

2007-12-09T09:46:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday October 7, 2007

The Ritz Carlton Hotel and Apartment Complex at Mega Kuningan was completed in 2005. In a relatively small roundabout, the Ritz Carlton is the first part of several stages of future development of a mix-used complex for retail, commercial and office towers. The hotel was built on a circular shape lot, in the center of the Mega Kuningan complex, a spot I assumed was reserved for green area.

Located in front of the JW Marriott Hotel, the new complex consists of two skinny 48 floors sleek glass towers with a gothic style base building which serve as the lobby and main reception of the main tower. When you drive into the hotel, after going through the security checkpoint, you will have to drive up the ramp to get to the hotel lobby at the rear side of the building. At this point, you will notice a large blank wall on the side of the building.

Furthermore, another blank wall is to be found on the other side of the hotel. Both of these blank facades are easily visible if you go along the circular road. The blank facades appear to be too contrasting with the heavily decorated front and rear face of the hotel. I am assuming that these blank walls will be demolished to connect with the future extension.

However, two years has passed by and having to stare at these large empty walls since the completion of the hotel is not an attractive experience. Personally, the blank facades are damaging the overall image of the hotel and considered as the worst façade design in the city.

Imagine that the hotel is like a left over piece of a layered cake on an almost empty plate waiting to be taken away. Being a left over is already bad enough for the layered cake, but the sliced side of the layered cake is more attractive than the hotel’s blank wall. Having blank facades on the side is equivalent to typical manner in residential design in Jakarta, where enclosing the side and rear façade is a necessity for privacy and security reasons.

Ritz Carlton is not as introvert as a private house. It is situated in a public domain where all facades, especially at the lower level, are engaging the public realm. The blank facades are more suitable for other types of building that requires less natural light such as parking garage, storage or even a grade B shopping mall.

These blank facades also contradict with its classical style where ornamentation always wraps around the building. These walls made the building appear like a decorated shed, where the ornamentation is merely a decorative illusion to conceal the interior, the kind that you always find in a cowboy movie.

Designed by Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart & Associates (SRSAA), an international architecture firm based in Atlanta, USA, the blank facades suggest ignorance and a lack of effort in blending with the urban context and public domain. They also diminish the elegance of one of the prestigious hotel in the city.

Caption for the two images:

“The two blank facades of the Ritz Carlton Hotel + Apartment”

All images are by Zenin Adrian

Nikko Hotel: A subtle presence next to the Hotel Indonesia roundabout

2007-12-09T09:34:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on September 30, 2007

The Hotel Indonesia roundabout has been serving as Jakarta’s public gathering space, a political space where any activities such as demonstrations, political party gatherings or entertainment will be recognized and covered by national and even international media. Interestingly, the new extension of the Nikko Hotel on Jl. MH Thamrin, formerly known as President Hotel, did not receive much vibes.

Not too many people recognized that the former President Hotel and Wisma Nusantara has been transformed to a fresh appearance. The new expansion and renovation project was designed by Kenzo Tange Associates, an internationally renowned modernist Japanese architecture design office. The office is headed by Kenzo Tange who is a laureate of the Pritzker Prize, an academy award for architects.

Originally built in 1970s, the expansion and renovation project was completed in 2003. The new expansion on the north side is connected with the old President Hotel with a long double height lobby space. Enclosed with glass façade, the transparent new lobby appears to have an intimate and subtle relationship with the Hotel Indonesia roundabout and Jl. MH Thamrin.

Preserving an old building is never an easy task. Although the old President Hotel was not as old as other colonial buildings, the renovation preserved the original image of this historical building. It did not transform President Hotel into something else. The new roof seamlessly connects all three buildings and simply generated a single image for all of them.

The transparent glazing produces strong effect of connection of the lobby space to the vibe of the Hotel Indonesia roundabout. A quality that is extra ordinary and particular to the new expansion while other buildings in the vicinity do not have similar impression in their public domain.

Responding to the hot climate of Jakarta, the west facing glass façade is recessed behind a row of tubular columns and large overhang (Picture 01). This overhang shades the glazing from the sun ray, a similar strategy which is applied at the old President Hotel and the new building’s façade where all windows of the hotel units are shaded with shading devices (Picture 02).

One thing that I highly admired about this building is how the new lobby is well proportioned and does not feel extravagant. That impression was generated by a considerably low ceiling compared to other exclusive hotels in Jakarta. The entrance door is low enough to give a compressing experience before entering an elongated grandeur lobby. This is how Japanese sense of scale plays tricks in manipulating the experience without utilizing large scale spaces.

Interestingly, the new expansion on the north side was designed with respect to the old building. The design accommodates the President hotel’s old style which result in making the new building does not look too modern and the old one does not look outdated. The architects demonstrate their well understanding of the character of the old building. Consequently, the overall hotel complex gave the timeless expression which is an intricate task for every architect.

The new image of the hotel appears modest in contrast with the ongoing enormous renovation project of Hotel Indonesia on the other side of the roundabout. The simple yet sophisticated addition has transformed the old building into an elegant new hotel.

Captions:

Picture 01 The glass façade with tubular columns of the new lobby

Picture 02 The new lobby connects the new expansion with the former President Hotel

Picture 03 The Nikko Hotel viewed from the Hotel Indonesia roundabout

Picture 04 The glass façade connects all three buildings seamlessly

All images are by Zenin Adrian

Greening roofs: A simple way to reduce global warming

2007-12-09T09:18:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday, September 23, 2007

One of the reasons why the people of Jakarta moved out to the suburbs during the 1990s real estate boom was the need for more green space.

Back then, the general assumption was a house would not be complete without the grass next to it.

Such an ideal has lost its priority. Jakarta becomes more and more congested each year and people spend more time trapped in traffic.

Re-urbanization in the past few years has gained its momentum concurrent with the erection of new apartment buildings in the heart of Jakarta.

The price of land has risen drastically and the city's density is higher than ever before. Nowadays, people are more willing to live in much smaller lots. However, this paradigm shift has not been followed by a small-living mentality, which means living more efficiently and optimizing space usage.

People tend to maximize their homes within the lots and without a choice, leaving no space for greenery.

Many homes are still built in a traditional manner, as if Jakarta had more green landscape to spare, with the exception of one particular house on Jl. Tangkuban Perahu, Guntur, South Jakarta.

The house offers more green space than any other conventional urban home. It does not utilize a traditional pitched-roof design; rather it has specifically been designed to have a green roof.

Designed by Adi Purnomo, a Jakarta-based contemporary architect known for his environmentally conscious approach, the house has changed the perception of how houses in urban settings should be designed.

*****

A green roof does not simply refer to color of the roof. It is a roof that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and soil, or a growing medium, planted over a waterproofing membrane.

Green roofs gained popularity in North America in the last few years, although they are not as common as in Europe. Developed in Germany in the 1960s, green roofs provide a lot of benefits, especially to improve the quality of life in Jakarta.

One benefit is that a green roof helps to reduce the urban heat island effect, where a certain area in an urban setting is significantly warmer than its surroundings.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) explains that when vegetation is replaced by asphalt and concrete for roads, buildings and other structures necessary to accommodate a growing population, these surfaces absorb the sun's heat, causing surface temperatures and overall ambient temperatures to rise.

Another benefit of green roofs is a physical phenomenon known as evaporative cooling. The rainwater retained by green roofs generates the water evaporation process within the roof's layer. This process cools the roof and significantly contributes to lessen the energy used in air conditioning.

*****

The scarcity of green space in Jakarta should be compensated for in our own personal space.

The house on Jl. Tangkuban Perahu does not merely convert the traditional flat roof into a green roof, but also proposes a new approach for an urban house garden.

The green roof on this house serves as stacked landscape and changes the perception of a multistory home as each room in the house has the luxury of facing at least some greenery.

However, the application of a green roof does not come without challenges. Technically, green roofs require more structural consideration than conventional roofs to accommodate the extra weight from the amount of soil and water they retain. The roof has to be deep enough to allow vegetation to grow depending on the type of plants it uses.

The other hindrance is more cultural than physical. In some beliefs, the idea of living underneath the soil is viewed as being buried under the ground, as in a graveyard; a feature that is undesirable for a house.

Ultimately, having a green roof on top of your house is one of many things we can do to upgrade our living quality in Jakarta and reduce global warming.

Similar to increasingly popular hybrid cars, green roofs should be viewed as next-generation luxury features, rather than Italian marble or classical columns.

All images are courtesy of Adi Purnomo

The Glass House at Taman Menteng: A Failure in Understanding the Climate

2007-12-09T09:05:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday September 16, 2007

In the past, the only reason that drives me to go to the Jl. HOS Cokroaminoto, specifically the stretch where the Hotel Formule-1 is located, is the famous “nasi gila”. An oily fried rice dish mixed with vegetable and meat that was sold by the street food vendors along that stretch. Other than that, I always tried to avoid it because the traffic was always heavily congested with the disorganized street parking.

Up until late April 2007, along with the opening of the new park called “Taman Menteng” to the public, the traffic in that stretch was decongested. It was a result of simultaneous effort of strictly enforced parking restrictions, the construction of new public parking building, and relocation of the street food vendors.

For me, the new park itself is just a neat place to be. Its welcoming plaza made it publicly accessible, especially from the intersection of Jl. HOS Cokroaminoto and Jl. Prof. Moch. Yamin. From that end, we can explore the whole park through a network of walkway strips.

Taman Menteng is considered as Jakarta’s prototype model of a multi-function park, a new concept for revenue generating facilities where traditional parks were considered too costly to maintain. It is a new concept for providing more public parks to Jakarta. Inside it, you can find several main features of the park, the futsal, basket ball court, a tiny children’s playground and two glass houses.

At first, I thought the glass houses were designed for botanical related purposes, which can be commonly found in a park or garden. It surprised me when I saw a bunch of air conditioning’s outdoor units lying next to the structures. The glass houses turned out to be built to accommodate social events such as exhibitions, weddings, seminars and plant shows.

I could understand the need to provide a transparent structure that could blend with the landscape. But such transparency wasn’t followed with a thoughtful design.

At least 9 air conditioning units were installed inside each of the 100 square meter glass house. The installations appear unplanned, because they were crudely attached to the structural steel pipe inside the glass house (Picture 2).

The interiors should be extremely hot especially in the sunny day so they need to have abundance use of them. These transparent structures were not designed for the hot climate of Jakarta. Both of them do not even have ventilation at the roof for the hot air to escape, an essentially important feature for a glass house design.

The glass houses are constructed with steel pipe structure to form the pitched roof shape. Some of the pipes extended out of the glass façade, without touching the ground (picture 3). These small decorative details added up the glass house’s heat problem. Those extensions generate an effect called “thermal bridging”, a condition when an exposed structure becomes a thermal conductor and allows heat to flow through the structure. Those decorative steel pipes bring more heat to the interior and torment the air conditioning units.

I never knew that hideous air conditioning units have become decorative elements. The designer of this structure should have anticipated the heat problem and designed a more integrated system or at least cover them with the plants.

In my opinion, the glass house represents a lack of understanding for our own climate. Thermal comfort should have been an indispensable principle in good building design.

Overall, Taman Menteng is still a pleasant addition to Jakarta’s urban experience and gives a refreshing approach for providing more green spaces in Jakarta. I am sure there will be more conversions of existing parks into this prototype model. Nevertheless, I hope the park officials will put extra attention in providing good facilities with better design.

Captions:

Picture 1 The two glass houses at Taman Menteng from the intersection of Jl. HOS Cokroaminoto and Jl. Prof. Moch. Yamin

Picture 2 The protruding steel tubes and the air conditioning units

Picture 3 The crudely attached indoor air conditioning unit.

All images are by Zenin Adrian

Green: The underappreciated design approach

2007-12-09T09:00:00.000-08:00

Was published in the Jakarta Post – Sunday, August 26, 2007

Since Al Gore revealed the "inconvenient truth" of global warming, I have seen more enthusiasm and awareness on saving the environment than ever before.

I guess it takes a Hollywood movie to remind us all of this global threat to the existence of mankind. People seem to talk more and more about how we can play our part in saving the environment.

An environment-friendly way of life, popularly known as green living, is not associated with hippies anymore and has inspired changes in every aspect of life.

In the building construction industry, the reemergence of green concept building design has become widespread, since buildings account for 40 percent of global energy consumption.

Energy-efficient design here has regained its relevance after it was virtually abandoned from the early-1980s through the late-90s, coinciding with Indonesia's economic prosperity, partly due to cheap energy.

During that period, most high-rise buildings in Jakarta were based on the assumption that energy would be consumed lavishly. Few applied energy conservation principles.

One was Wisma Dharmala Sakti on Jl. Sudirman. Completed in 1987, the building applied many energy-efficient design principles. Although many people underappreciated this extraordinary building, in my opinion, the building's design makes it one of the "greenest" buildings in Jakarta.

*****

The architect, the late Paul Rudolph, designed the building by utilizing a series of traditional pitched roof forms in order to provide sun shading for each window.

The overall image of the stacked pitched roofs creates the impression of a tropical skyscraper. Each pitched roof functions as a shading device that reduces a significant amount of solar heat that would otherwise enter the interior space.

The building management says this strategy has conserved energy in air conditioning by up to 30 percent in comparison with conventional window design without any shading device.

Regardless of the extra effort required for cleaning the windows and the sloping roofs (since they could not be accessed from a conventional, suspended maintenance cradle), the architect exploited the roofs for growing ivy on the lower part of the building.

The ivy quite literary turned Wisma Dharmala Sakti into the greenest high-rise building in Jakarta.

Green design is not just about greening a building with plants; besides, energy efficiency only plays a small part in it.

There are a lot of other requirements to fulfill before a building deserves the label "green".

Waste management, rainwater harvesting and the utilization of environment-friendly building materials are among these.

Surprisingly, Wisma Dharmala Sakti adds something else to Jakarta's urban experience.

At ground level, the architect designed an inner courtyard for the lower floor spaces to which to orient (photo 2). The ivy turns the courtyard into an oasis in the middle of Jakarta's concrete jungle.

The courtyard plays an important part in cooling some part of the building by encouraging the "stack effect". This is the movement of air that occurs due to differences in air density resulting from temperature and moisture differences.

The effect provides natural ventilation both inside and outside the building. The courtyard also provides indirect natural light for the interior spaces.

Few people are aware of this courtyard, even though it can be accessed directly without entering the lobby. Even I could not find until my third visit to the building.

As I descended to the courtyard, it felt as though I was not in Jakarta anymore. This great space somehow seems alien in Jakarta; it is like a hidden pocket and feels like a luxury that is hard to find in other Jakarta high-rise buildings.

Another great space in this building is the mezzanine on the fourth floor (photo 3). The space is a large terrace connected to the courtyard mentioned below, next to the building's canteen. This large terrace has an incredible view of the surrounding buildings in the area; from here you can really examine how the ivy occupies the sloping roofs underneath the belly of the building.

*****

I must share my admiration for the Wisma Dharmala Sakti's design where great spaces can be generated from simple green design concepts.

Unfortunately, the building is generally underappreciated and more people are in favor of sleek glass curtain walls.

I believe that instead of trying to achieve the tallest building, people should compete more to create the greenest one.

They still assume this sustainable approach is a new paradigm and demand new solutions: We take for granted what is already around us.

Nowadays, it takes celebrities to promote green lifestyles to all of us.

Al Gore is not the only one: Leonardo Di Caprio, a long-time environmentalist, will soon release his documentary film on the environmental crisis.

Brad Pitt staged a green design competition on new housing for Hurricane Katrina victims in New Orleans. Even the notorious Paris Hilton bought a hybrid car.

I sincerely hope being green does not become a temporary fad but a permanent way of life.

All images are by Zenin Adrian

Improving interaction through a pedestrian network

2007-12-09T08:50:00.000-08:00

Was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday September 9, 2007

I always thought Grogol, West Jakarta, was not the best place for an educational establishment. Its noisy intersections, lack of tree shading and polluted air hardly constitute an ideal learning environment.

However, the inception of Tarumanegara University's campus building has changed my perception.

The design of the new building was selected through an open design competition carried out in 2005, and was won by a Bandung-based architecture design office, Urbane.

The most distinctive feature in their winning proposal was the strategy for opening up the campus building for much more socially friendly purposes.

Personally, I think this new addition to the campus is one of the most publicly engaging buildings in Jakarta. It has created a more intimate relationship with urban public life.

Both parts of the new complex, a 22-story campus building and an eight-level multistory car park, reserve the ground floor area for a pedestrian network connection and retail functions for the students.

Almost all urban private campuses in Jakarta faces the same problem of managing parking spaces for their students. With most middle-class households in Jakarta owning cars or motorcycles for every member of the family, educational institutions inevitably face parking problems as complex as those of shopping malls.

Usually, this problem is at the bottom of their list in improving educational facilities.

*****

I must commend Tarumanegara University and the architect for tackling the problem, which I believe demands great motivation, although the provided parking spaces seem inadequate in comparison with the university's large student body.

This strategy transformed the congested old campus where you used to struggle with the cars in the campus into a more lively venue where students can interact and socialize with each other.

It seemed like a small gesture, but the impact seemed larger than the campus itself.

According to its architect, Ridwan Kamil, the separation between new and existing buildings allows the wind to flow through the campus walk.

I must agree with him; the main plaza is surprisingly cool for Grogol. This unique situation provides a good basis for the school's other new feature.

The erection of the new buildings has also been accompanied by the construction of what has been called "campus walk", a large pedestrian strip plaza connecting all the campus buildings, from the Jl. Letjen S. Parman side all the way to the far end of the campus.

The walk has become the main gathering space for students to interact.

The space plays an important role in the knowledge exchange between students in an urban environment. Schools often consist of several high-rise buildings. A multi-high-rise campus dramatically segregates students from one another.

Consequently, the school needs to make an extra effort to provide an environment conducive to collaboration between students.

Urban campuses in North America such as MIT, USC, Harvard and the University of Toronto face a similar problem in how to bring their students together.

Among them, MIT seems to have put in the greatest effort. The school specifically built a huge gymnasium for its students and also promoted collaboration between departments by providing more specific joint facilities, while other schools merely organized social activities.

However, it is still up to the students how they exploit the collaborative environment that has been provided. The social culture in Jakarta is highly complex and segregated.

Students from different social classes and cultures come together at Tarumanegara University. Therefore, the university has a huge task to actively overcome this segregation in by improving interaction between students.

Schools with socially interactive students will be more productive; the development of our education system depends on them.

Tarumanegara University should continue with initiatives like the campus walk while other opportunities for student interaction and collaboration need to be explored.

All images are by Zenin Adrian

The columns of the new Constitutional Courthouse: Abusing the classical order

2007-12-09T08:40:00.000-08:00

was published in Jakarta Post on Sunday September 2, 2007

Recently, a new classical building has been added to Jakarta’s long list of newly built. This new building of the Constitutional Courthouse on Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat houses the nine judges of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Indonesia.

According to my lawyer friend, this building is the nicest courthouse in Jakarta where generally other courthouses are in bad shape. The new courthouse represents a highest appreciation to our judicial system.

The courthouse employed classical style in its design, similar to the adjacent historic buildings such as the National Museum and the Merdeka Palace. It is set on a pedestal like base with steps in front of it with nine supporting columns sits in the façade of the courthouse.

At a glance, this new building stands out from any other building in the area. Not only because of the significant dome roof, but also the steps open up the building to the street which make this courthouse public friendly. These steps indeed generate the illusion of going up on a hill as a typical classical architecture device where the courthouse portrays as a Greek temple.

The reason I am mentioning the Greek temple is because of the courthouse’s columns.

We can determine which classical order the building employs from the design of the capital of the column. In classical architecture, there are five canonical orders where each order has specific a column design. Each order belongs to either the Greek or Roman period. The Greek has Ionic, Doric and Corinthian order while the Roman has Tuscan and Composite order (Picture 2).

The nine columns of the courthouse is definitely Greek’s Doric order (Picture 3). Doric columns are fluted with concave grooves and topped with smooth capital that flared from the column to meet a square slab.

The Greek Doric order has been widely used in buildings of trustworthy institutions since its reappearance in mid 18^th century in the new phase of Classicism in the United States and Europe. It had new connotations for projecting images of high-minded primitive simplicity, seriousness of purpose and noble sobriety. It also suggests incorruptibility, thus it suits well with the image of the Constitutional Court.

However, original Doric columns stand directly on top of a flat pavement without a base, while the ones in the courthouse stand on top of 1.5 meter base. Even the Roman version of the Doric columns stands on a low square pad or a plinth. This is the first rule the Courthouse’s design violates.

The other violation of the classical order is the number nine itself, which symbolizes the nine constitutional judges of the Constitutional Court. Columns in classical architecture do not sacrifice function over decoration. They are always true to their purpose, to provide space. Column never becomes the center of the façade. The space itself is the center. That is why the columns are always in even number, where the doorway always in the middle.

The courthouse design has disturbed that order for the sake of symbolic value. Classical architecture has specific rules and order that needed to be understood and adhered to. The rules have been developed over many centuries of experience and research from a great civilization. Classical Architects since the 15^th century has been adapting the rules from the book “De Architectura”, known today as “The Ten Books of Architecture”, authored by Vitruvius (1^st century BC).

In my opinion, violation of the order would be a sign of disrespect to the classic style. People tend to think that architectural style can be abused and applied anyway they want. We can see how catastrophic the result is. The new Constitutional Courthouse is weirdly proportioned and inelegant in its nature. This contradicts with the original intention of the courthouse.

Captions:

Picture 01 The new Constitutional Courthouse from Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat

Picture 02 Five basic classical order of column’s capital. (From Encyclopédie by Denis Diderot and Jean le Rond d'Alembert, France, 1777)

Picture 03 The Constitutional Courthouse’s Column

All images are by Zenin Adrian

Understanding Busway’s Brutal Design

2007-12-09T07:22:00.000-08:00

Was Published in Jakarta Post on Sunday August 19, 2007

Regardless of its controversy, the Busway project has a lot of contribution in improving Jakarta’s public transportation system. As a consequence of its political burden, the project needed to be deployed in a short amount of time. This limited time frame has a lot of impact in the design of the Busway stations.

Of course, there is nothing sexy in the design. One should understand that better design needs more time. I am not sure how constraining is the budget and time for this project. However, the design expressed those considerations which allow the design architect, PT Arkonin, to exploit the economy of scale principle. Generic design and adaptability to site condition are the two main considerations so the station can be mass produced.

Each station is supposed to be designed air conditioned free and allows cross ventilation by enclosing the station with aluminum grilles. It is a box in shape, with slight slanted walls and windows in two of its sides for aesthetic consideration. The design itself is very straightforward and functional. The steel structure is exposed with minimum decoration, so you can still see how each station are put together. The whole station unit has to be raised off the ground to accommodate the height of the bus’s door. In some stations, the platform has extra height so they have to provide little steps going down for the passengers to get into the bus.

In order to conserve the budget and reduce construction time, the Busway stations need to utilize existing infrastructure. In most cases, the station units exploit existing pedestrian bridges and add ramps for easy accessibility. I must admit, this ramp addition has potential to increase public enthusiasm and attract more passengers. However, this added feature is not followed up with improvement of the pedestrian infrastructures. I can still find some ramps landed on poor sidewalks or unmarked pedestrian crossings.

If you go through the Busway routes, you will find that there are a lot of variations in the design of each station. Median’s space availability plays a key role in producing these variations. The ones in Kuningan and Sudirman area only differ in width because of the size of the median. In Mampang Prapatan area, the ticket stall has to be separated and raised far above the ground because the median is too narrow to accommodate the width of the station (Picture 1).

Consequently, not all stations have similar convenience for pedestrians. For example, the one in front of Sarinah Thamrin building is the only one equipped with elevators for people with disabilities (Picture 2). Contrary, pedestrians face higher risk for accidents when they have to struggle into a super busy four lanes traffic on Gajah Mada Street (Picture 3) where it has no pedestrian bridges nor zebra cross available.

Some of the stations were deployed without thoughtful adaptation to the condition of existing site. The gigantic Busway central station at Harmoni had to hover above the Ciliwung River and completely enclosed it (Picture 4). While the river is already in a poor condition, enclosing it only contradicts with any efforts to improve it. The river becomes inaccessible to allow maintenance or any effort for beautification.

I can understand the budget limitation of the project and how it should maximize the use of existing infrastructure. However, the deployment of the station units appears so brutal because it disregards harmonious relation with existing condition. I believe it is already a rooted culture in Jakarta that in providing public infrastructure, quick fixes is more favorable, finding cheapest solution and short term thinking defeats larger public interests. Jakarta’s Public Officials should exploit this Busway project as an entry point for larger improvements.

Lastly, I can imagine that a Busway passenger would have a hard time to distinguish one station to another. Mass production should not be the excuse for producing generic design. Locality plays a key role in public transportation design. A passenger should have the ability to recognize their location at all times, small signs or audio announcement do not always work.

I am not proposing for each station to have different design, as you can find in Montreal’s (Canada) subway station. Even smelly New York’s MTA (Metropolitan Transportation Authority) station or gloomy Paris’ Metro Station has directive ornamentation. Locality could be achieved with simplest effort, whether applying different materials and colors or even utilizing public artworks.

Pictures:

Busway 01 Busway station on Mampang Prapatan

Busway 02 The only Busway station with elevator in front of Sarinah Building

Busway 03 Separated Busway station on Gajahmada Street.

Busway 04 Harmoni Busway Central station on top of Ciliwung River

All images are by Zenin Adrian

Thematic architecture: Commercially driven cultural imitation

2007-12-09T07:13:00.000-08:00

Was Published in Jakarta Post on Sunday, August 12^th, 2007

If you happen to drive along Jakarta's inner city toll road, specifically the Sunter or Kemayoran stretch, you will definitely not miss this building.

Its pattern and colorful decoration, predominantly in red, blue and green, means the building cannot be ignored. You may also wonder why there are camel, elephant and horse figures sitting atop this building. Surprisingly, it is not a zoo in any shape or form.

The animal figures turn out to be part of the design concept of Artha Gading Mall. The theme of the mall is the journey of the Silk Road experience and it is supposed to create an illusion of being in another time and place.

The Silk Road itself is a series of interconnected ancient trade routes through different regions in the Asian continent that connected China with places in Asia Minor and the Mediterranean.

The route stretches over 8,000 kilometers on land and sea. Trade along the route was an essential part in the advancement of the great civilizations of China, Persia, India, Rome, Mesopotamia and Egypt. The mall's design objective is to recreate the places along the Silk Road.

The plan of this large shopping complex has a straightforward rectangular shape but, three-dimensionally, is composed of several shapes and elements of varying size.

This is a typical design principle for a building this size, because it generates an exterior appearance composed of several different buildings. However, the facade design (the building's outer skin) can be totally unconnected to the interior design.

The Silk Road design theme is applied in the interior of the mall, specifically for the atrium design. The building has seven interconnected atriums, each representing places along the Silk Road.

They have called these atriums Nusantara, Persia, India, China, Italy, Paris and Millennium. I do not understand the relevance of Millennium in Silk Road history, but it could be part of a design decision and the team may not have been able to think of a better name for it.

Nevertheless, the design runs to the extent of recreating decorative elements that reinforce the ambience of being in those cities.

*****

In the first atrium, Nusantara, you can find a replica of a candi (temple) made out of red brick coursing and a flying Gatot Kaca (a character in the Mahabharata epic legend).

The Persia atrium is decorated with an oval-shaped vault with a bluish Persian pattern, complete with a flying carpet. In the Indian atrium, the decoration is inspired by the decoration and ornamentation from the Taj Mahal mausoleum (burial chamber).

A Chinese, ornamented canopy with red columns fills the China atrium, while a hybrid of the leaning tower of Pisa and the Coliseum's row of arc vaults decorate the Italian atrium.

Although Paris was not part of the Silk Road route, you can find a statue of Venus along with other statues of gods and goddesses in the Parisian atrium.

Last but not least is the Millennium atrium; it is not really clear what the cultural reference was for creating this large atrium. I could only see lavish use of glass and stainless steel materials, and also bizarre curving metal ribs hovering above the atrium.

Architectural design is certainly closely related to cultural and historical settings. It also coincides with development of trades and craftsmanship.

The thematic design concept at Artha Gading Mall is merely superficial and its purpose is purely for creating illusions. There was no real appreciation of cultural and historical context.

Thematic design is not an entirely new concept. Originally implemented in designing theme parks like Disneyland or Dunia Fantasi, the concept was intended to make people happy by creating an alternate reality or fantasy of being in a dream world.

Other than theme parks, its application in Indonesia has been developed in the late 1990s for new housing projects.

With similar intentions of offering an imaginative lifestyle and place to live, there was Kota Wisata in Cibubur or Kota Bunga in Bogor.

In fact, the thematic scheme made a major contribution to the successful sale of housing units there, despite meeting with a bad reception from architects and cultural activists.

Adopting the concept of those schemes, the mall has tried to re-create that success.

The attraction of customers and an increase in sales have become the only things that drive the design, while functionality and elegance are sacrificed.

Culture is reproduced out of context. Superficial image generation is prioritized, abandoning the value of craftsmanship.

Nonetheless, designed by PT Airmas Asri, Artha Gading Mall provides a spacious and pleasant shopping environment.

The layout is straightforward and easy to navigate. I personally enjoyed the dining experience there.

Although you will not find goods related to the Silk Road theme, you can find almost all of the things you are likely to need on an everyday basis.

In my opinion, the thematic concept is not a necessity and the effect does not last long. Is that what modern architecture is all about?

In the end, people will visit the mall purely to shop there. However, one can only speculate as to whether there is a correlation between the selling of goods and the ornamentation of the mall.

All images are by Zenin Adrian

Monolithic building a critique on Jakarta skyscrapers

2007-12-09T07:10:00.000-08:00

Was Published in Jakarta Post on Sunday, August 05, 2007

Having been away from Jakarta for only two years, it feels more like a decade compared with Boston, where time seems to stand still.

My wife says Harvard Square is exactly the same as it was 20 years ago. Jakarta, in contrast, has been very dynamic in the past five years.

Many new skyscrapers and shopping malls are popping up in almost every corner of Jakarta. I feel that I've missed a lot of the action during that short period away.

One of the things that I have noticed back in my neighborhood in Kuningan, South Jakarta, is the increase in the number of skyscrapers. Menara Karya is one building that I have found most interesting, yet peculiar among this new breed.

Its unconventional form and setting in its site have been a source of some mystery as to its meaning and contribution to social and cultural discourse.

Designed by Miami-based architecture firm Arquitectonica, Menara Karya offers a different design notion compared with the skyscapers that currently surround it. The building is considered monolithic because it produces a single body image rather than one that breaks apart into smaller pieces.

It is unlike adjacent skyscrapers that employ a more conventional design strategy -- the traditional proportions of kepala-badan-kaki (head-body-leg). Furthermore, some buildings even have a crown at the top.

This crowning strategy is a common feature to be found in most Jakarta skyscrapers; it involves special design treatment at the top where the penthouse and mechanical equipment are located. (Culturally, the crown is more a symbol of prestige than functionality.)

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The design of Menara Karya appears to reject all these traditional Jakarta norms. The effortless design does not even employ a traditional rectangular outline; instead, it is more like a stretched hexagon. The longer sides are a straightforward planar surface, while the other two are slanted-glass curtain walls.

The horizontal mullions (divisions between windows) on the flat sides and vertical mullions on the slanted sides do not even meet in the corners. My reading of this approach is that the design tries to create the impression of a sliced object rather than a complete one that has been carved somewhere else and brought to Kuningan as its final showcase.

According to the building's website, the architect refers to the design as "a chiseled diamond in the skyline", an idea that I found hard to relate to.

Diamonds popularly have a five-sided or pentagonal profile, while Menara Karya has six sides or a hexagonal profile. The outline of Menara Karya reminds me more of the shape of menhir stone -- the kind that Obelix, a character in my childhood Asterix comic series, carried around on his back.

This menhir building definitely feels more like a giant object rather than an occupiable architectural space. The bulkiness stands out from the adjacent buildings.

I admire the design because of its consistency to generate a coherent menhir stone image down to its detail. In addition, there was little obvious effort to design the entrance area.

It seems as though holes were pierced at the bottom of the building, while sets of doors and a canopy show where the entrance is located.

Menara Karya does not even engage urban life. In its design, the landscape around is left untouched and undesigned, dominated by car circulation and maximum parking space.

Unfortunately, like most office buildings in Jakarta, there is no convenient access for pedestrians who enter from the busway station or other buildings. The design exhibits no clear intention to draw people in.

In my opinion, the menhir stone image is a direct critique of office building designs in Jakarta that are generally anti-social, in the sense they restrict public access, are friendlier to cars and are heavily guarded, Fort Knox-style.

Each building operates like a little country, which has to be on constant security alert, tighter than at our own international airport.

I believe this kind of approach does not belong in an urban culture, as exemplified by more "cultured" cities in the rest of the world. This kind of building behavior is more "kampungan" (unsophisticated) or should I say "ndeso (socially awkward) as in TV comedian Tukul Arwana's words.

I must share my admiration, though, for Menara Karya in being true to its form and providing a fresh design approach to the Jakarta skyline.

The design also unwittingly provides a critique on how skyscrapers in Jakarta are designed. Its anti-social manner fits into Jakarta impeccably and provides its tenants an oasis, isolated from urban life.

All images are by Zenin Adrian