|new Singapore commune|
With a strong background of cultural and ethnic diversity, Singapore architecture is a result of its varied influences. Contemporary Singapore architecture has a strong focus on sustainability, with many examples of vegetative landscapes being introduced into high-rise buildings. Green architecture and ventilation is particularly important for the architecture in Singapore due to its humid climate. This page of projects, interviews, and events details a young nation with a traditional colonial past pushing towards its own unique style of architecture. The downtown skyline of a city is perhaps its most symbolic feature. The iconic cityscapes that we know and love are typically formed by skyscrapers, but much of the surrounding context is made up of other high-rise buildings. Yes, there is a difference between a skyscraper and a high-rise. These high-rise buildings play a major role in the more sprawled urban context of larger cities today. Mercer released their annual list of the Most Livable Cities in the World last month. The list ranks 231 cities based on factors such as crime rates, sanitation, education and health standards, with Vienna at #1 and Baghdad at #231. There’s always some furor over the results, as there ought to be when a city we love does not make the top 20, or when we see a city rank highly but remember that one time we visited and couldn’t wait to leave.
Sand is the most-consumed natural resource in the world after water and air. Modern cities are built out of it. In the construction industry alone, it is estimated that 25 billion tons of sand and gravel are used every year. That may sound a lot, but it’s not a surprising figure when you consider how everything you’re surrounded with is probably made of the stuff. But it’s running out.This is a scary fact to think about once you realize that sand is required to make both concrete and asphalt, not to mention every single window on this planet.Many of us have the common misconception that sand is an infinite resource, but the harsh reality is that it isn't. At the rate we are using it, countries such as Vietnam could run out by as soon as 2020, as estimated by the country’s Ministry of Construction. A specific sand is required for use in construction and, unfortunately, the abundance of sand from the world's deserts is of very little use to us, as the grains are too smooth and fine to bind together. The usable sand we need can take years to form and with our current consumption, it’s just not sustainable.As the demand for sand continues unabated, so do the worldwide problems associated with it. The multibillion-dollar industry is causing onshore sources to become depleted and sand miners are turning to less favorable supplies.
I have developed a new proposal for this intensive reconstruction environment. According to this proposal, instead of high-rise buildings, I propose a new urban texture that is formed inside each other. I think of rebuilding the housing texture through a series of conversations and transparent gaps. Transparent corridors pass through the housing units formed over the top. These transparent corridors constitute public spaces and transit areas.As the world population grows and cities usually expand into the surrounding areas, or because of static infrastructure form way too high urban densities, the question arises what alternatives we have at the latest after exhaustion of land reserves. For the form finding, an growth algorithm was used to emulate the growth of corals. Porosity of the structure helps to decrease wind pressure from the side while at the same time providing outdoor spaces that can be accessed via the respective unit.
