BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (HONS) (ARCHITECTURE)

YEAR 3 SEMESTER 5

THEORIES OF ARCHITECTURE & URBANISM (ARC 61303)

THEORIZING ARCHITECTUREASSIGNMENT 1 - PART 1 - STAGE 2:

KIEW WEE KEE 0310202TUTOR: MS. IDA

SITE: DAMANSARA PERDANA

Damansara Perdana is a new developed city with 2 main major types of building developments, commercial and residential. Having a rather strategic location, which is just

beside Lebuhraya Damasara Puchong, LDP, a relatively busy highway from time to time, Damansara Perdana has been very well known for the few commercial buildings constructed in its compound (e.g. Empire City, Point- 92, PJ Trade Centre, etc.).

Strategic location of Damansara Perdana

“Every developer thinks that each building has to be ‘iconic.’ But this cannot be so and there is a need to understand the importance of contextual buildings.”

This is the theory proposed by Dr. Steffen Lehmann, who is a German Australian urbanist, author, theorist, educator, and a research professor in the School of Built Environment in the same time. Being an architect who emphasizes on the idea of “Green Urbanism”, Dr. Steffen Lehman believe that urbanization of cities and the environmental consequences has always moved hand in hand. Hence it is relatively significant for building design to fit in with the surrounding context.

Green elements an be found all over the developing area

In response to the design concept of “Green Urbanism”, Damansara Perdana as a developing area, is very much different from other existing cities. This is due to the fact that greeneries can be found almost at every corner of the city, which is intentionally designed to be in such a way in order to create a seemless balance and connection between human and nature.

The idea of “Green Urbanism” proposed by Dr. Steffen Lehmann introduces the importance of implementing green elements into building design. In fact, the idea is more towards having the city merge and blend in perfectly with the nature, creating a city closer to the nature.

“Greens” in PJ Trade Centre

Point 92 submerged with greens

“Green Urbanism” does not literally means “Green” city.

Previously people think that it is hard to create a sense of balance between nature and artificial structures due to the fact that industrialism has turned pieces and pieces of land into concrete cities. The fact that the more developed cities there are, the lesser the “Greens” will be has made people believe that there is no way nature and structure can coexist in the same time. However, Dr. Steffen Lehmann thinks the other way round; to him, it is possible. But first, the idea of making a city green does not merely meant to just plant trees at the designated compound, but on the other hand, depends very much on how contextual the “structures” are.

Contextualism suggests an architecture strategy that responds to its surrounding environment by respecting what is already there.

Damansara Perdana is known as an area which is yet to be fully developed; hence the

existence of forest from the hills surrounding the city area has become the main context of it.

Damansara Perdana is surrounded by green forest from the hills

In this case, the design of the small urban city of Damansara Perdana has made to come in very close relation with its context, by having tree plantings along the roadside; just as if the greens are a continuity from the forest. This is to create the feeling where the structures are actually a part of nature. In fact it is to show that the structures are actually adjuvant to nature, not the nature being a subordination of the city structures. Thus, having the design of Damansara Perdana based on the concept of “Respecting to the surrounding”.