MSA Stage 4 School of Architecture
Seungsu Yang
The Architecture of Analogy
Urban building and housing stand as three dimensional organisms while urban research is two dimensional work. Architecture in urban context strives its own manifesto against the urban environment and at the end they create an unique harmony which is referred as synthesis in Aldo Rossi’s writings. I researched on the attitude as an architect to design urban housing and building that creates synthesis between its own resolution and urban environment. Analogy is the key aspect of this design methodology, The architect processes project based on the analogy of architecture and urbanity. In addition, the architects have to provide an equivalent analogy to the audience to be able to make them to follow the imagination and discussion of the project development. This project is not a declaration, it is a manifesto for open discussion in the urban environment. The information provided in the other module than studio work created a fundamental theory of my design methodology which includes research project, architectural technology and professional studies. These are separated set of information from the target urban environment of the project. The project is driven with multiple perspectives of urbanity which follows various perspectives of architecture as a giant conception need to be stated prior to the project development. The project development is based on the findings from urban site research and analysis and the knowledge or perspectives from other modules. The process meant to have a continuous discourse between general and practical knowledge and indigenous and personal informations. This methodology does not aim to provide the optimal resolution for the identified urban environment, it targets to show the architects, the student’s attitude toward the urban environment provided to him, since I am not a complete architect who is good enough to make the project successful. The will for the endless discourse between general knowledge and personal experience / urban environment and individual position, creates an overview of the project as a living discussion between architecture and context. It is never too good to completely obey to the client’s demands or completely dominate the context with personal design proposal. I tried to provided an endless discussion between urban context and my project proposal with research and analysis of the site, Thornwood.
Projects
Thornwood Urban Project
Thornwood Urban Housing Retrofit
Thornwood located on the edge of the westend, Glasgow. Adjeacent to Broomhill, Partick, Glasgow harbour, and Hyndland in a fairly close distance. The boundary of the districk is defined to Crow road and Dumbarton road vertically, and Partick railway station and Thornwood park horizontally. The project aims to identify Thornwood’s definition within its neighbourhood and justify the concept of dwelling to the people in the residential area, moreover in Glasgow. The primary potential development is the accessibility to other district, especially to the west. The proposal focuses on subtle integration of urban heritage and accessibility to create flexible combination of living. Regenerate Urban Heritage of Thornwood from 19th century is embeded on Thornwood Quadrant, Crathie Court, Partick railway station, and Thornwood green. The project aims to regenerate interrelationship between the heritage and the history of the neigbourhood is regenerate. Urban Texture + Edge Condition; the indigenous and atmosphere formed with the texture of tenement which is preserved from 19th century of Thornwood in respect of the speciality of social housing in Crathie court and Thornwood Quadrant. Solidarity from the speciality of Crathie court and Thornwood Quadrant that are designated for a single unit of living. It is reinterpretated in the project as a new mode of dwelling that is suitable to post-pandamic condition of social and private space. Accessibility is the main development of the project in response to the demands of the neighbourhood group in the Quadrant. It indicates the dissatisfaction and an element to improve the dissonance between indigenous and modernity of Thornwood.
Thornwood Lifelong Education Centre
Based on the morphology research of the site, the proposal concludes that the demands of community centre in between Dumbarton and Crow road is a potential resolution of accessibility and connectivity of the district. The concept of lifelong education inspired by Volkshochschule, VHS in Germany that is a lifelong education institution established national-wide. The project follows the core principles of VHS, providing flexible and various subjects, no grading system, focusing on self-development and reflection, projecting freedom from existing education theories, and ensuring flexible duration of education (from a week to couple years). Most importantly, the proposal concentrates on lifelong education which refers there is no target age range in the curriculum, it only reflects the range of interest within the neighbourhood group. In the progress of the project, it is expected to provide connectivity between Thornwood to Crow road and Dumbarton road, that the site functions as a bridge that associate adjacent districts. The post-pandemic life reduces chance to have in-person education for post-graduates (refers any people with no affiliation to education insitute) or post-retirement. Hence, the construction of new community centre which takes a role as an education institution potentially gather residents from various districts of Glasgow. It is a new concept of social dwelling proposed in the project in response to the urban housing project in the same site while respecting and succeeding the urban heritage of Thornwood through its urban texture and edge conditions. The entire discourse between housing and building project leads active participation of residents into the collective advantages in Thornwood as neighbourhoods.
