Beijing, Winter 2007 -3 to 5 degrees C. brrrrr.
Shanghai, Winter 2007 -2 to 10 degrees C. brrrr.

I wonder how colddd it feels to be in Beijing a few weeks back. Just when it seems as though the temperatures couldn’t go any lower two months ago… brrrrrr.

But such is the impact after a good two weeks of travelling the much hyped Beijing and Shanghai and also touching base on Shenzhen (mainly for the HK-SZ biennale)- you dig the China vibe. The trip has ignite an interest in these ‘new’ Chinese cities and its people, especially its living architects, artists, film makers & writers who- more than anyone else, care about making sense of this radical phase the entire nation is traversing.

And thankfully, the way we perceive a city is often very subjective. So here’s a honey pot of personal highlights, recommendations- just some stuff to share.

China Walk (19.12.07- 02.01.0

Beijing will be, or already is the next coolest city & tourist hot-spot in the making! - for all its vitality in reinvention (and pimping the city) , in cultivating a spirited art scene and a whole new world of bold architectures, transformations & openness! Shanghai on the other hand feels relatively more stable, a city that is probably worth spending some time living or working in and you get to explore the various aspects of its urbane life on a more micro level. Beware though, people are generally less friendly, quite nasty. hmm. Shenzhen in comparison is a less developed Chinese city whom unlike HK- its neighbour across the border, feels mostly empty, spacious and sparse. Until you walk into the heart of this mini shopping district that is, where almost everyone seems to be.

798 Art District, Beijing

17 pavilions situated in an agronomic small city, Jinhua. Probably the longest stroll through a park ever- Architecture elemental and poetic.

I suppose what also makes these travels more meaningful at the end of the day is when they evoke thoughts & reflections about your urbane life back in your own city- when you begin to ask “Why not?”.

And of course with just a mere 2 weeks plus of travelling and 3 cities, we can’t get too far on ‘Mapping China’- here are some other fragments that could possibly make up the bigger picture:

DVD China

Shop. Along 自忠路 near 新天地 this shop with a surprisingly wide selection of films which got us pretty excited. A gem yeah.

盲山 (Blind Mountain, 2007)
Li Yang

We got this non-pirated DVD for a mere 21 yuan and it came bundled with 天堂口 (Blood Brothers). An earnest offering from independent Chinese director, Li Yang- his second feature film after the award winning 盲井, Blind Shaft. Beautifully shot almost entirely in a remote Chinese village, Blind Mountain paints a picture of suburban Chinese society through its take on one of China’s social problems- sex trade and slavery. Unvarnished and gritty in realism, it depicts a society in the throes of moral collapse. Certainly worth shoving China chic aside for a moment to spend some time on this gem of a film. Looking forward to more films from the director!

Read China

Shop. Books, Bookstores, design bookstores are not an uncommon sight especially in cosmopolitan Shanghai. Good for picking up cheap copies of the Chinese editions of A+U and Detail- we also found copies of Chinese Conception of Space (中国空间) by Li Xiaodong, ex-Professor and design tutor in NUS. Written in both languages, and it is about erm, Chinese conception of space.

Commune By The Great Wall (长城脚下的公社 ) -
Catalog/ Book/ DVD
A really decent book which documents all the houses of the private collection in drawings in pretty pictures, in Chinese and in English. Got this from the souvenir shop within the Commune itself.

A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary For Lovers (2007)
Xiaolu Guo

Probably the only published literature/novel ever- that is rightfully written in badddd English, and thereafter shortlisted for the Orange Prize in literature. A light and easy read, the transient relationship between an Englishman and Chinese woman is examined in the format of a dictionary. Imagine ulu and shamelessly honest Chinese girl from communist China meets carefree, arty and worldly Ang moh in London. Personally, the high strung clashes in ideals and philosophies between two people and two cultures as well as the good humour as a result of this lost in translation are truly the memorable moments in this rather delightful read.
Guo is also a film director whose feature film How is Your Fish Today? (2006) was selected for the Sundance and Rotterdam Festivals. Someone to look out for!

Hear China

Ever wondered what the modern China indie music scene is like? P.K.14 is a Beijing-based art punk band who was recently voted by TIME magazine (together with local band, The Analog Girl) as one of the five Asian bands to watch in 2008. It doesn’t matter what these guys are slurring- as long as they slur in Chinese, trash the frenetic rhythms, dish out the politics, play to a largely underground scene and appear deep, dark and dangerous… slurpsss.

China.SG

Primary Colours: Feng Zheng Jie - Exhibition @ SAM - till 20th April

Renowned Beijing artist in the contemporary Chinese art scene best known for his Portrait of China series which deals mainly with the issues of a globalised China. Stylistically sensual and pop.

奥运精华游 Olympic Walkers - Channel U , Thurs 9.30pm
13 episodes across the seven Olympic cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Tian Jin, Qing Dao, Shen Yang, Hong Kong and Qin Huang Island and witness the preparations for the world sporting event!

Film: Boomtown Beijing, Dir: Tan Siok Siok, Singapore International Film Festival ‘08
A documentary by local film maker, executive producer and educator Tan Siok Siok while he was a visiting lecturer at the Beijing Film Academy- A film about the ordinary Beijingers’ Olympics experience.

and China.
__________________________________________________________

While you can’t compare it to the catalytic visit to Bali by Liu Kang and the other pioneer artists, it bears a slight resemblence in that rediscovery of the old-world, the carefree and the picturesque. We learn about the human scale, we learn about the urban spatial condition and the development of the city. Most of all, we uncover the “humanity” of the town - the refreshing Chendol, the rich Nyonya Laksa, the Curios-shop auntie along Jonker Walk who informs us of the 2 ringgit bus ride, the assembly of students in St. Francis School, the nanchuk-wielding housewife battling mineral water bottles in an early morning exercise routine…. and so on.

A beautiful town.

notes the sudden number of Melaka posts from the Archi3 blogosphere.

In light of that one-week-holiday-but-i-still-got-design-to-do spirit, here’s a highlight of some games to check out: endless fun while stimulating your brain to solve those space-planning issues.

1. Fez by Kokoromi

Architects should have no problem navigating this game - they read and draft out so many elevations in their lifetime! A homage and 3D twist to those 2D games of old Nintendo.

2. Portal by Valve

My favourite game firm eschewing the traditional space continuum to create yet another dimension to their already immersive CG environment with their Source Engine. (trailer)

3. Echochrome by SonyJapan

Releasing soon, this uses an axo engine called the Object Locative Environment Coordinate System, an interactive optical illusion software, to create an Escher-esque landscape which one has to navigate through and “solve”. (trailer)

This trend of 3D puzzle games is exciting, exploiting and capitalising on the very notion of three-dimensionality. Make sure it doesn’t screw your head up!
(Via Thomas’ blog, SuperColossal)

back to Malacca!

PTURE
by Jonathan Yue, Yip Ching Lok, Geraldine Lum, Song Xiao Xing, Yi Hye Mi

Sometimes to move forward, you got to look back at the past. As design becomes more complicated, with inevitable emphasis on sluggish practical issues like structure and services, it can be inspirational to remember the energy and idealism of early projects.

This brings to mind a project done by fellow classmates back in Year 2. The brief was simple - a sound sculpture, raising awareness of the sonic through form. So it is not really architecture: it’s part art, part science contraption. Here nature becomes the mediator between sound and shape. In their own words, they wanted to create an “interplay of time, movement and sound”.

(Hundreds of moving flags)

As wind blows, it calls to attention hundreds of flags taller than human height, and like automated louvres they open or shut the path of noise coming from the nearby road. Imagine the visual delight when these flags shift from one state to another, like a domino effect, a battalion of swaying flags!

(No dust on acrylic)

A path meanders amidst all the flags. Walking through, the experience kicks in - when buses cease to be heard with a gush of wind, or when a cacophony of engine roars accompanies the opening of the sonic gates.

(A path of experience)

What also amazes me is the effort behind this project - experimentation leading to tectonic materialisation as well as an elegant acrylic model as seen above. The energy to explore, from concept to realisation to presentation, is somehow an intrinsic quality of early works. Many people eventually forget how it used to be, and the Mundane sets in, losing the magic of doing architecture, or whatever it is that they are doing.

So here is a potent reminder of the inquiring mind, something to inspire lest one has lost his/her way.

See more:

towards technology crit…

A monochrome collection of apartment buildings on Monk’s Hill Road and a row terrace houses on Monk’s Hill Terrace. The black and white in Newton.

Designboom, a famous online portal about art, design and architecture has been running quite a few posts about Singapore’s scene. It began with the Singapore Design Festival 2007, and it went to feature other local news such as the newly opened Naumi Hotel and an interview with Theseus Chan, principal of WORK.

Do check out WOHA’s Studio at Hong Kong Street: a corporate resort studio in characteristic tropical browns and serious monochromatic tones.

surfing.

冰糖葫芦

He got the fruits from the shop at 上海老街, washed and prepared them in skewers after which he dips in a sinful pot of sugar syrup and left them to solidify until the fruits are encrusted in a thick sugar coating.

Going for only 2 yuan per skewer, the 冰糖葫芦 may not be the best snack in town but the idea of holding and eating one, is a happy one. They look happy too.

Once again, 新年快乐!

and happy holidays!

Easily applicable to architecture (at least the 1st half), also easily my favourite part in the film:

“In many ways the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. But the bitter truth we critics must face is that, in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is more meaningful than our criticism designating it so. But there are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the new. The world is often unkind to new talents – the new needs friends. Last night, I experienced something new, an extraordinary meal from a singularly unexpected source. To say that both the meal and its maker have challenged my preconceptions of a fine cooking is a gross understatement. They have rocked me to my core. In the past, I have made no secret of my disdain for Chef Gusteau’s famous motto: Anyone can cook. But I realize: only now do I truly understand what he meant. Not everyone can become a great artist, but a great artist can come from anywhere. It is difficult to imagine more humble origins than those of the genius now cooking at Gusteau’s, who is, in this critic’s opinion, nothing less than the finest chef in France. I will be returning to Gusteau’s soon, hungry for more.” 

- Anton Ego, Ratatouille

Market at 老街，上海

THE WOOD RAT 1924 AND 1984:
Despite having a remarkable facade of self-confidence, deep down, Wood Rats are the least sure of themselves compared to other Rats. However, they wouldn’t dream of showing this side of themselves to anyone. Only close companions of a Wood Rat would ever suspect that he or she had such self-doubt. In fact Wood Rats are often worried about downfall, despite their ability to find success. Well-liked, proficient, and good leaders at work, Wood Rats seem to function best when they are surrounded by family and friends. Cordial and delicate, they are usually well loved by family, friends and peers.

THE RAT LUCKY NUMBERS: 1, 3, 6, 8

THE RAT LUCKY COLOURS: Gray, blue, white

THE RAT LUCKY DIRECTION: Southeast

THE RAT LUCKY BUILDING: HSBC, Hong Kong

THE RAT LUCKY ARCHITECT: I.M. Pei

THE RAT LUCKY MATERIAL: Litracon

THE RAT LUCKY CAREERS: Real Estate, Banking, Architecture

made the last 4 up: haha but hope its true! Happy CNY!

As Dr. Wong Yunn Chii suggested in his Singapore 1:1 Island Exhibition, we are now going through an architectural phase of Innovation/Distinction with works like the new National Library, Sports Hub, Vivocity exhibiting iconicity. Well, the residential sector is not lagging behind either. The humble HDB has given way to shimmering condominiums with iconic marketing points. The latest shimmer is none other than (gasp) another project by OMA.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Old

The New

(1_Reflections at Keppel Bay: DANIEL LIBESKIND)


(2_Apartment Tower at Scotts Road: OMA)

(3_Apartments along AYE: OMA)

3 firms, 3 developments, 2 star names.

It’s almost like a battle between the real estate companies. As if a culmination of the property boom, a climax of their current endeavours, that becomes a keystone of their residential portfolio.

The Contestants

CONTESTANT 1:
KEPPEL HOMES with Reflections @ Keppel Bay - DANIEL LIBESKIND

Twisting Towers? Nothing really exceptionally new, but this was one of the first projects to use a starchitect in its marketing campaign. I’m not sure if its selling well, judging from the hideous number of full page ads running in the Straits Times.

CONTESTANT 2:
FAR EAST ORGANISATION with Apartment Tower @ Scotts Rd - OMA

May not be a new concept internationally, but much so for Singapore I guess. Suddenly it opens up possibilities, and its rationality towards providing better views suddenly makes sense.

CONTESTANT 3:
CAPITALAND RESIDENTIAL with Apartments along AYE - OMA

This latest contribution to Singapore’s rojaktecture has a bewilderingly obscenely simple strategy. It’s almost childish; stacking slab blocks in a hexagonal pattern like stacking cards - is this taking experimentation to a new level? However simple it may be, I can’t wait to see more renders to judge the internal circulation and spatial dimensions.

 

RESULTS: At the moment, I kind of like No. 3 most, however weird it may be. Someone commented it as a “chic slum”, I find that really funny. I guess it has its qualities, yet to be explored, yet to be seen. I guess my main reason right now is its ability to push HDB/residential architecture in Singapore towards a more stimulating direction, instead of the banality that sprawls in our heartlands.

suddenly remembers the IFHP competition.