/  BACKGROUND

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From the 1820s, Joo Chiat became an area of coconut and cotton plantations. It was only from the 1930s where the area of Joo Chiat began to develop in order to cater to the growing residential population.

 

Today, Joo Chiat’s multi-ethnic influences are most prominent in its architecture and dining. The district became a vibrant and bustling place set in a heavily urban context.

 

However, the introduction of the city grid created a neighbourhood that is filled with developments and lacked in landscaping. Here, the concrete jungle is immersing and the sensitivity towards serenity is lost.

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/  THE ARTIST

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The client for this project is an admirer of the works of an artist, Mikhail Baryshnikov. Hence, the project is focused on the translation of the art form into architecture.

 

Mikhail Baryshnikov is a Russian ballet dancer. His career in ballet holds firmly to his manifesto which embodies the few principles of simplicity, transparency and an earnest execution. He has performed in many shows and one of the most significant one was ‘La Bayadere’ in the Moscow International Ballet Competition in 1969.

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/  THE ESSENCE

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Architecture and dance, despite being two apparently diverse subjects, present a complementary relationship regarding space and movement. In an attempt to translate dance into architecture, the principles of continuity and lightness are considered for the design strategy of the dwelling.

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/  THE ARCHITECTURE

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The design of the dwelling attempts to re-establish the lost sensitivity towards serenity and recreate the essence of dance. The architecture depicts the continuity of a singular plane that embraces and synthesises with the abode and the landscape with grace.

 

A strip of plane wraps seamlessly around the spaces, mimicking the posture and movement of the artist, while composing the essence of lightness as it rests gently on the surface of the water.

 

The expression of the form resembles the posture of the artist where the torso plane of the second storey is successively flanked by two curves which form the floor of the first storey and the roof structure. The main ideology behind the fragmentation and intertwining of the form is served to express the artist’s manifesto of simplicity and transparency.