For the Hong Kong Shenzen Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism / Architecture (UABB), four Bangkok design practices were invited to collectively design a piece of architecture along the waterfront area of Kowloon.
The design for a viewing platform for the Biennale grew out of discussions between Architectkidd, Chat Architects, Studiomake, and Thingsmatter.
Together our goal was to create an architecture that illustrates our manner of work as well as the characteristics of Bangkok. The viewing platform was also designed to be an elevated space and a bridge to visually and spatially connect along the waterfront site in Kowloon.
The viewing platform has four separate components – stair, structure, platform and furniture. Each component utilized a specific material, was fabricated in Bangkok and then shipped to Hong Kong for on-site installation.
Architectkidd’s component was the structure of the viewing platform. Together with SHERA, we developed a structure that made use of panels of SHERA Ply, a fiber composite (FCSTM) material.
Over 750 different pieces (16 mm. thickness) of SHERA Ply was used to form and stack 6 uniquely shaped columns, 2 meters high, that served as the structure for the viewing platform. The pieces were numbered, drilled and aligned so that they can be assembled and arranged in Hong Kong.
Using a locally manufactured material such as SHERA represents the kind of design we do in Bangkok, where we often combine both high and low technology in our projects. Our goal was to create something where hand craft meets fabricated precision, where natural meets artificial, and where the old engages with the new.
Bangkok is a city where every day people make things. As designers, we make use of this kind of material resourcefulness in our projects. For us, design is an iterative process of working between digital and manual techniques.
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