iso6 nice. but really do we human behavior really need more non-committal  encouragement ...why don't we just get rid of the call button!

They say: " No Pain, No Gain". But when Pain becomes an Addiction, will we know what has hit us and when to stop?

When does that fine line between gaining become losing? or when pain become suffrage?

In all aspects, will we even know that we are suffering or what we are losing? or does denial take over and the illusion of an addiction to gaining becomes our false reality?

will we know what has hit us until it is too late, the reason/ excuse to our own suffering?

http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid18289923001?bctid=24930210001

So I'm looking to design something for asylum seekers, immigrants and refugees.
Not to mention providing low cost accomodation for tourists and other visitors.

Looking for designing refugee camps regulations, according to www.refugeecamp.com, 'You too can design a Refugee Camp!' . Yeah! we've been promoted from a 7th grader to a M.D.!

Then there's SHRIMP (Sustainable Housing for Refugees via Mass Production) Refugee Housing, shipping conatiners....

Isn't it ironic that buildings are said to be made for people and yet those who actually occupy or use these buildings are seldom able to influence its design. 

In the Dutch culture, according to Design Quality in New Housing: Learning from the Netherlands by Matthew Cousins, the Dutch have some sort of governmental policy which improves the quality of the housing and quality of the environment, as it demonstrates aspects of good housing design. 

'The Fifth National Policy Document on Spatial Planning, published in 2001, defined design quality through seven criteria: (1) spatial diversity; (2) economic and social functionalities; (3) cultural diversity; (4) social equality; (5) sustainability; (6) attractiveness; and (7) human scale.'

This intro then goes on to explaining each criterion. What strikes me is the implementation of a healthy lifestyle, regardless to location. No wonder a lot of people are in love with the Netherlands. 

The requirement of investing in infrastructures (no. 2)serves and supports the criterion no. 3. which is the spaces for diverse activities amongst the community. Which explains no. 4. etc. These rules are quite simple to follow and logical as they are based upon basic human needs.

So what lead the the failure of various vertical cities and other social housing projects in the past? Namely LC's Unite d'Habitation and Pruitt Lgoe. I'm sure there are others out there, but i don't know...

So I guess the Dutch are pretty happy people, living in their pretty high standards of living... well, according to Building Happiness: Architecture to make you smile, Edited by Jane Wernick, a key ingredient, is one's relationship to mother nature and our five senses. Pretty Simple!

However our ambitious lifestyle, constantly running errands, working and just being stressful is affecting our 'normal way of life'. especially by being constantly indoors- the lack of proper ventilation reduces our body's intake of oxygen; noise pollution (need i say more); the lack of being in the sun therefore not producing enough serotonin, which is known to lift depression and aid happiness; and finally the varing change in room temperatures (esp. the difference between indoors and outdoors).

Wow, we're in trouble and are all depressed. 

So how do we as architects, (or me cause its my project) begin to envision spaces that do not limit the individual/ user from designing his or her own space or restrict the movement of the user within the building by assigning specific circulation routes and specific locations for interaction? 

The past contributes to the future. Over the course of time, Hong Kong has become such a 'working' city, where the fun part of life related to nature is lost.

Things that are missing out (or lost) in the lifestyle of today's Hong Kong society....


Swimming in the Harbor - well the water's too dirty now to do that. but this was in the 70s so....lets clean up the water, and stop throwing trash into it!


Cutting your hair in the streets? shoe shining...

bike riding in the city. i'm sure that will help with reducing the traffic. then again i don't think hong kong is a safe bike riding city at all. but if we start a trend maybe we can reduce pollution? and finally... green space! no wonder we are so 'stressed' out! i guess we have to have some grass and force people on it so they can 'relax'!

Some of my analysis. too bad only after all this i found the following works done by a collaboration between ETH Basel and the students of Chinese University on the same subject and done ten times better....

The Chungking Mansions was built in 1962 as luxury apartments for the middle-class and elites of both western and Chinese culture. In the 1970s, the South Asian population began purchasing apartments and transforming them into business spaces for South Asian and Western merchants. Over time, these apartments were sub-divided and sold off, resulting in the current 920 property owners and over 4000 residents (at any given time). With residential, restaurants, offices and guest-lodges all located possibly on the same floor, the deterioration of the building is due to negligence by the many owners. Negligence by the result of the building having no primary shareholder/ property owner, therefore they cannot keep up with the wear and tear from all the traffic in & out of the building while balancing out who's responsible for fixing what.

Furthermore, the desire for low-cost accommodations by tourists has not only provoked the numerous guest houses, but also has compromised the standard boundaries of comfort. The room dimensions are limited to its furnishings, resulting with rooms from 70sq ft. to 180sq ft. Regardless of size, the low-cost has attracted over 120 nationalities. Many of these visitors take advantage of the visa-free-period entry permit to Hong Kong to conduct trade. As a result there are inhabitants of over 120 nationalities located within this building.

Based upon the understanding above, I created these various diagrams to help understand (sorta) the context of the building, in terms of those who pass through this building.

Hong Kong Visa-Free Periods based upon country.

Percentage of people within the chungking mansion. (figures based upon average statistics of assumption not fully accurate, but gives an idea to those affected by the existance a building of such 'program')

Analysis of the people residing within this building. Information made up but mostly likely holds some sort of accuracy. Plus, how fun would it be if I were not able to make up a story based upon my studies of this building?

Michael Wolf and density

http://www.magicalurbanism.com/?p=127

Technology permits us to experience buildings spatial no matter where you are.
Only problem is that you cannot control the camera. Nevertheless, they are much better than just photos...so enjoy...

Chungking Mansion





some videos i found of the bedrooms