GAPABLE THE NOTCHABLE BOUNDARY ALVIN KWEK GUAN TING GAPABLE (adj) Blurring the gap between historical and commerical site by creating a gap.
Site Analysis Smell
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Site Plan Gapable: The Notchable Boundary is designed to accommodate expats who reside individually or in pairs. It is a residential building that co-exists with small commercial offices. Upon site analysis, I found that the two sides of the site are segregated by ambiguous smells from its surroundings — the commercial office building and the historical conserved shophouses. A gap (Macro Void) was created between the two sides of the building to blur the gap between commercial and historical surroundings with the following design features: wind circulation, two different façades and structural systems. All of which enabled a gap to be formed within the building.
Sectional Perspective Scale 1:150
During my first site visit, I was overwhelmed by the unbearable smell of the surroundings, as — coincidentally — the trash-collecting truck stopped by the area for collection. Upon further observations, I realised that the back alley was always filled with full trash bins by nightfall, which was a contributing factor to the unpleasant smell of the site surroundings. On my subsequent visits, I discovered more contributing factors to the unpleasant smell. It was observed that there were many smokers in the vicinity, who mainly worked nearby. Also, surrounding food-and-beverage establishments had their cooking exhausts placed at the back alley, adding to the foul smell I experienced.