Empowering The Cultural Urban
Group GSA
Matt Young
Managing Principal
Group GSA
Our team will be looking to rediscover what is already there. To do that our first task will be to identify a number of sites in District 1 that are somewhat forgotten, under-utilised or even dilapidated but are intrinsically Saigonese. Once identified we will analyse what it is about these sites or buildings that contributes to the character and sense of place within the City – from there we will make proposals to reinvigorate the sites and bring them more strongly into the public consciousness.
Scale
The scale will be both urban and pedestrian level, by adapting and reusing existing infrastructure from different sites within District One we aim not only to identify what makes Saigon special but to empower those same cultural relics.
We aim to redress balance by recognising in the midst of necessary change and reinvention there is a place for recognising and reinvigorating that gave the city its unique character....
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Project Facilitators
Michael Pharoah
Tom Allan
LiveABILITY
Vietnam | Ho Chi Minh City
04 - 24 July 2016
Overview
Built structures on their own have no cultural importance until they are used, perceived, and become part of the human experience. Group GSA wants to emphasize the importance of people in the design process, they believe that designing for and around the community’s habitus is key to creating social and cultural identity within the city.
Context
As we see the rapid development of Asian nations such as Vietnam existing building stock and infrastructure comes under increasing pressure as it requires updating and expansion to service the new urban condition. An unfortunate by product of this process is often the loss of culturally significant buildings and the replacement of existing typologies with new alternatives. This can see a loss of the city’s character, in some ways a denial of what made the city the success and desirable place for development in the first place.
We aim to redress that balance by recognising that in the midst of necessary change and reinvention there is a place for recognising and reinvigorating that which gave the city its unique character. In an increasingly globalise world where architecture is constantly being transplanted from locus to locus we are seeking a method of identifying and enhancing what makes Saigon a city apart from all others – this should be done without throttling change and growth.
Architectural Practice
