Through The Looking Glass - 2014 MArch Thesis

THROUGH THE LOOKING...

GLASS

AN EXPLORATION OF ARCHITECTURE AND THE GAME MEDIUM AS A NARRATIVE DEVICE

A 2014 HKU MArch Thesis Mike Kwok

Preface

How is our cityscape transformed when its consumed through a medium?

How Controlled Are Our Choices?

City = Stage Set?

Facades as theatrical backdrops?

A visual encryption of the city..

History and Identity encrypted under facades...

How do tools craft us?

Perspective...an inescapable illusion?

The Cty As A Puzzle

How Controlled Are Our Choices?

City = Stage Set?

Thesis Abstract MArch thesis 2014 Through the looking Glass A project that investigate major historical episodes of conflicts in Hong Kong from its founding in 1841 through colonial and post-colonial times, to the contemporary. It interrogates and reassembles the historical cityscape at critical instances of social unrest and upheavals of Hong Kong; including the 1911 Xin Hai revolution that ended the Qing Dynasty and the 1967 Leftist riots in downtown central that is associated with the cultural revolution in mainland China.

On the technical side, the thesis also seeks to interrogate a relatively nouveau medium of narration and spatial consumption -The video games medium. Architecture and formal articulations in the immersive medium share resemblance to theatrical stage sets/film sets in whose sole purpose is to setup the diegetic scene upon which a series of narratives and dramas unfolds. Yet the video game level also differs and is unique in that it is the only medium where the continuation of the narrative is dependent on the participation of the player, making the consumer of the medium also an active author of the story.

A Simulacrum of Hong Kong re-invented in a video Game format formed the canvas on which historical narratives of Hong Kong are reassembled alongside a reconstruction of their contemporary urban built environment, facades and streetscapes in the virtual simulacrum environment. Through a series of media archaeology and archival studies, scenes of riots and revolutions are recreated and re-enacted in 4 separate “game levels”, which corresponds to 4 independent historical events.

Level 1,2 and 3 are abstract levels that are mend for gameplay only within the game medium.

Level 1 consist of a long train track passing under a sequence of selected facades that are historically significant and representational of the city’s major era.

Level 2 presents a sequence of anamorphic sets transformed from historical buildings in central, where the 1911 revolutionist, Sun-Yat-Sen once stepped foot. The sequence tells the story of events lead-ing up to the 1911 revolution that ended the Qing dynasty in China.

Level 3 re-enact the sequence of events that took place during the 1967 riot in Hong Kong. Downtown central was one of the many places where major violent demonstrations and clashes between po-lice and protestors took place. The game environment is composed of a sequence of anamorphic forms, pathways, hotel rooms and viewports that together, narrates the major episodes that took place in downtown central during the 1967 riot.

Facades recreated to enact these historical scenes are anamorphically transformed to cater to the videogame narrative medium through which it is experienced. These facades operate similarly to the architecture and theatrical stage sets of Vicenza’s Teatro Olmpico.

In the level 4, stage sets created in a generic virtual environment is adaped on the a real existing side in downtown Hong Kong. The anamorphic devices were then adapted into small scale pavilions nested along the Hong Kong Central elevated pedestrian walkways - A system of existing elevated footpaths that connects the podiums of commercial towers in downtown, very similar to New York’s Highline’s bridge walkway system. The intervention seeks to provide an extra-territorial, “detached”, atemporal-transcendental perspective of the city, cutting through the diachronic strata of the city. Pedestrians wandering through the elevated bridges of downtown would see historic facades of the city condensing in and dissolving out of perspective, overlaid on their contemporary modern counterparts. As the simulacrum city becomes a historiographical apparatus, it begins to recognize itself in this diachronic “mirror”; a mirror that consist of an atemporal juxtaposition of its historical carcass upon itself.

A project that investigate major historical episodes of conflicts in Hong Kong from its founding in 1841 through colonial and post-colonial times, to the contemporary. It interrogates and reassembles the historical cityscape at critical instances of social unrest and upheavals of Hong Kong; including the 1911 Xin Hai revolution that ended the Qing Dynasty and the 1967 Leftist riots in downtown central that is associated with the cultural revolution in mainland China.

On the technical side, the thesis also seeks to interrogate a relatively nouveau medium of narration and spatial consumption -The video games medium. Architecture and formal articulations in the immersive medium share resemblance to theatrical stage sets/film sets in whose sole purpose is to setup the diegetic scene upon which a series of narratives and dramas unfolds. Yet the video game level also differs and is unique in that it is the only medium where the continuation of the narrative is dependent on the participation of the player, making the consumer of the medium also an active author of the story.

Through The Looking Glass An exploration of Architecture as a

Narrative Construct

Contents

Book 1

Thesis Premise

ch1. Prologue ch2. Thesis statements ch3. Methodology of Investigation .

Book 2

Pre-Design Studies

ch1. Media

& Narrative Studies

Narrative Sequence VS Spatial Sequence Comparison of Spacial articulation in different Narrative medium Diegetic VS Non DiegeticsTime in Films and Games Relationship between Space, Time and Narrative in non-linear narrative mediums Point of Perspectives of narration: Film Vs Game Films & The City Hyperreality & The Post modern City

ch2.

ch3.

Case study of Video Game Levels Mapping a Single player Story Game level Mapping a Multiplayer Game level

Technical Modeling & Level Creation Exercise:

---Recreating Central District in a open-source Video Game Engine--.

Book 3 Site Studies

ch1.

Site Study

ch2.

Story Time

Mapping Central

Uncovering the Stories and Memories of Central Exploring Central (HK) Through Films

Book 4

Ames & Perspectives deconstruction

ch1. Pirinciples of Perspective Deconstruction

Book 1 Thesis Premise, Hypothesis and Methodology of Investigation

ch1.

PROLOGUE

Architecture can be seen as an everyday’s narrative. It is an articulation that we commonly recognise as a realworld entity residing in physical space.

However, like any narrative, Architecture can also reside in non-physical mediums. This could come in the form of:

Linear Timebased medium: Films,

Documentaries

ulti paged 2D medium:

Books, Photo Albums, Flip book

Singular 2D medium: Paint-

ings, Photo, Map

Non-Linear Timebased medium:

Game Level

Architecture Space residing in these mediums of narrations are never direct copy of their real world counterparts. Their spaces are transformed & adapted to cater to the way users access & consume the spatial information from these mediums.

For instance, Architecture adapted for a chapter in a magazine comes in a Sequence of Pages that need to be flipped to access its spaces. It then makes sense to restructure the building according to the page size and the pages sequence of the book. While, a building adapted into a film set needs to be altered to cater to camera/character movements and post-edited as Shots and Sequences

ch2.

THESIS STATEMENT

A Video Game level is essentially a navigable spatial sequence selectively tailored and transformed to reveal the Game narrative.

ch3.

Methodology of investigation

1. This thesis investigates cases of real architectural and urban spaces that have been transformed and adapted for Videogames 2. From there, it seeks to explore how Game writers adapt and reconstruct spaces into a story telling-device 3. The studied process of adaption is then applied as a design methodology to Re-construct realworld Architecture and Urban Spaces into Architecture of Story-Telling; eg. Spaces that narrates a story

The Reconstruction Process Physical Space to Narrative Space

Realworld Architecture & Urban Spaces

Narrative Space to physical Space

Architecture & Spaces adapted into a Game Level

?

Physical Architecture of Story Tell-

?

Book 2 Medium Studies

ch.1 Narrative Medium Studies ---Narrative Sequence VS Spatial Sequence-----Comparison of Spacial articulation in different Narrative medium-----Diegetic VS Non DiegeticsTime in Films and Games-----Relationship between Space, Time and Narrative in non-linear narrative mediums-----Point of Perspectives of narration: Film Vs Game-----Films & The City-----Hyperreality & The Post modern City---

ch.2 Study of Video Game Levels ---Mapping a Single player Story Game level-----Mapping a Multiplayer Game level---

ch.1 Media & Narrative Studies Narrative Sequence VS Spatial Sequence Narrative Sequence ESTABLISHING SHOT

Establishing Shot-201S

Tension Build up

Spatial Sequence

Entrance/Entry Sequence

Main Entrance-Casa da

Pre-Function Spaces

Casa da Música- Stairway leading up to Mainhall

Transition Scene

Climax/Plot Twist

Resolution/ End Suspension/Loop Ending

Circulations

Main Spaces of spectacles

Exit Plaza

Comparison of Spacial articulation among different Narrative medium

Comparison of visual mediums in cropping built environments

Reality Scene

Frame of View

Events

built environment

eyes

All possible real events

Image

Films

Video Game

Built environment cropped by frame of image

Built environment selectively cropped by: - Scene setting - Pre-assigned - Camera sequences - post-production

Built environment selectively cropped into view by:

No physical camera movement

Camera sequences not controllable by audience

Camera sequences controllable by player

Events depicted within image frame

Sequence of events selected described by the films plot

Selected sequence of events from all possible real

- Extent of built environment modelled in Game level - Scene revealed according toPlayer navigation

limitations come in the amount of explorable space modelled

Selected events revealed to player depending on his navigation

Time structure in Film (linear narratives): Diegetic Time Vs NON-Diegetic time FILM time structure Diegetic Time(Story-Based Time)

Non-Diegetic Time(FILM RUN-TIME)

-Refers to Time within the world of the film narrative, and usually refers to the fictional time structure that film narrative is based on.

-Refers to the timestructure in which different scenes of the film is being sequenced and revealed to the viewer as they are shot, cut and post-edited in the final edition of the film roll.

-Film scenes could be told in forward, reverse or random order of Diegetic Time. Thus Diegtic Time could be independent of the sequence in which scenes are shown in FILM-RUNTIME

-Could be simply understood as the timeline-scroll bar that one scroll along while watching a video Clip.

-Scenes could be edited and restructured in Non-Diegetic Time depending on whether the narrative is to be told chronologically or achronologically.

Time structure in Game (non-linear narratives): Diegetic Time Vs Non-Diegetic time Game time structure Diegetic Time(Story-Based Time)

Non-Diegetic Time(Real-Time)

-Refers to Time within the world of the narrative, and usually refers to the fictional time structure that narrative is based on.

-Refers to the timeline which is not based on the narrative, but on the player’s movement through spaces in the game.

-A narrative could be told in forwardm reverse or random order of Diegetic Time

-Non-Diegetic Time could passby even without Diegetic Time moving forward.

For instance, a player moving within a single room looking for clues and tips to unlock and enter the next room is moving forward in Non-Diegetic Time but not neccessarily moving forward in the Diegetic timeline of the Narrative.

The player is frozen within a particular “Scene” of the Game but still able to move around to explore the Euclidean space in that “Scene”

-Only meaningful when discussed with the plot -In video Game narratives, Diegetic Time is usually moved forward when the player triggers a setup. Examples: --Opening a door/gateway-----Completing certain tasks-----Reaching a certain waypoint-----Eliminating an enemy---

-Non-Diegetic Time in a Video Game, is analogus to freezing a movie at a particular Scene but the characters within, still able to travel around within the Euclidean space of that Scene.

~ Non-Diegetic Time in a Video Game, is analogus to freezing a movie at a particular Scene but the with players still capable of interacting within the Euclidean space of that Scene.

Point of Perspectives of narration: Film Vs Game Point of references/shots Film

Video Game

Architecture

Closeup shot, panoptic Camera

First Person View

Static viewport

Cockpit/Driver view

Moving viewport

Third person view

Aerial viewport

Closeup shot, moving Camera

Stationary scoped camera

Multi-Character View

A Mapping of the single player game level with linear narratives campaing level: SOUTH CHINA SEA Battlefield 4, EA GAMES The game level designers cunningly transformed an aircraft carrier into a theatrical stage for a series of game events to unfold as the player explores the environment in first person perspectives. The designers took the carriers’ lattice of below-deck compartments under and carved out a route for the game player just by controlling which compartment doors are openable and which are locked. The adaptation of the carrier spaces also has to work with the core mechanics of the game; that is navigating spaces through opening compartment doors. Here the compartment doors become an important entity to create suspense for the gameplay. Players are made curious of what events are going to unfold by opening the next compartment door

ch.2 Case study of Video Game Levels

A Mapping of the single player game level with non-linear narratives campaing level: Tranquality Lane Fallout 3 Tranquality lane is a similated game environment with the game of Fallout 3 itself. According to the game narratives, the player is trapped in a virtual reality device within the game world. He find himself in a hyperreal village where he has to solve multiple riddles to escape the virtual reality village. The village houses are organised around a circular plan. The player is free to decide the sequence in which he visit each house to solve each riddle. The sequence of visit will determine the kind of riddles the player gets and the eventually the turn out of the story.

A Mapping of the multi-player game level with tuck of war gameplay Game level: Metro, Paris Battlefield 4, EA GAMES This is a multiplayer game level that does not depend on a structured narrative for game play.

The game environment is simply a part of a Paris metro station adapted for a tuck of war gameplay. Players on each side of th team are to capture key location points arranged in a linear fashion along different parts of the station.

Book 3 ch.1 Site Study Mapping Central

ch.2 Story Time

Uncovering the Stories and Memories of Central

Central’s System of Elevated Pedestrian Walkway Bridge Portions

Bridge Portions

Central’s System of Elevated Pedestrian Walkway Indoor Podium Portions

Central’s Inside-Out Urbanscape For pedestrians on the street levels, pedestrian bridges are considered indoor since they continue the indoor fabrics created by the clusters of air-conditoned shopping malls in Central. However from the perspective of pedestrians inside the bridges, they are now outside the realm of both the indoor shopping malls as well as the open streets of central, making their spaces a blurred hybrid of the two.

Central’s Elevated WalkwayNetwork Unfolded Elevated Pedestrian bridges & Walkways

This mapping unfolds the network of elevated Pedestrain walkways that connects various plots of Central’s podiums together & maps the view corridors that bridges look into.

CENTRAL Pedestrian Bridge System is a complex URBAN LABYRINTH raised above the congested ground level of Central. It serves both as a pedestrian highway as well as a pedestrian pavilion for the public. Stationed at an average 8 meters above grade, these pedestrian bridges provide unique views and framings to the urban site of Central.

Mapping the Diurnal Cycles of DownTown Central Within a single day, the urbanscape of downtown central goes through a cycle of changes in terms of lighting, pedestrian volume, activties, soundscapes and temprorary business insertions.

Weekdays

Weekends

Mapping the Weekly Cycles of DownTown Central Within the 7 days of a week, the urbanscape of downtown central also undergoes significant changes in terms of pedestrian types and activities

Over the Generations

Central, an ever changing urban StageSet The history of Central district dates back to 1841. It is the district with the longest history in Hong Kong. Since 1841, more than 7-8 generations of buildings have been built over the same plots of land. These historical transitions are analogus to a change of scenes & characters in a musical or opera. Central is essentially a stage for ever changing urbanscapes.

Over the Generations Central, an ever changing urban StageSet

LEFT Studying a game level from the game Battlefield 4, the game level designers cunningly transformed an aircraft carrier into a stage for a series of events to unfold while the player moves through it in first person perspectives.

They took the lattice of the ship compartments under the carrier deck and carved out a route for the game player just by controlling which compartment doors are openable and which are locked. The adaptation of the carrier spaces also has to work with the core mechanics of the game, that is navigating spaces through opening compartment doors. Here the compartment doors become an important entity to create suspense of what is going to happen behind the hatch doors.

Uncovering the Stories and Histories of DownTownCentral

Newspaper cuttings during the 1967 Riot

Historical Recounts of the Events in the 1967 Riot

Uncovering the Stories and Histories of DownTownCentral

Uncovering the Stories and Histories of DownTownCentral

Exploring Central Through Films Mapping scenes of movies set in Central

DAYS OF BEING WILD, CHARTER ROAD 1990

CHUNG KING EXPRESS LKF 1994

BATMAN, THE DARK KNIGHT C.D 2008

Book 4 Technical Experimentations

ch1. Optometric

Deconstruction Experiments

ch2. Perceptional

Effects Created by Optometric Forms

“point of zero distortion”, scale, depth, shadows, viewer’s motion

Point of Zero Distortion

Moving to & fro the prescribed “point of zero distortion�

Casestudy

Deoncstructing Central Market Facade

Lighting Experiment

Shadow Casting & how shadows could give away the illusion at the“point of zero distortion�,

EXPERIMENT

SCALE AND DEPTH ILLUSION EFFECTS

BELOW: ANAMORPHIC DECONSTRUCTION OF OFFICE SPACE

ABOVE: ORIGINAL OFFICE SPACE BEFORE DISTORTION (ONE ISLAND EAST 31ST FLOOR - AEDAS OFFICE)

THE ENCRYPTED VS THE UNENCRYPTED AEDAS OFFICE AT QUARRYBAY, HK

THE ENCRYPTED

THE ENCRYPTED VS THE UNENCRYPTED

BOOK 5

DESIGN

CENTRAL’S HISTORY TOLD IN 4 JOURNEYS

The thesis design reinvents downtown central using the videogame medium. architecture and facades of different eras are transformed into a gameplay environment/stage sets for the purpose of narrating the histories and stories uncovered from the city’s research. 4 independent game environments are created. Level 1,2 and 3 are abstract levels that are mend for gameplay only within the game medium. Level 4 is a real intervention onto the central elevated pedestrian walkway.

CENTRAL’S HISTORY TOLD IN 4 GAME JOURNEYS

LEVEL 1.

A LINEAR INTRODUCTION TO THE CITY’S FACADE IN DIFFERENT ERAS ~THE TRAIN RIDE

LEVEL 2.

TRACING SUNYATSEN’S FOOTSTEP ~THE INCUBATION OF A REVOLUTION

LEVEL 3.

1967 RIOT ~WITNESSING THE CITY’S TIME OF UPHEAVAL

LEVEL 4.

MULTIPLE CITIES IN ONE ~THE ELEVATED PEDESTRIAN WALK WAY AS AN ARCHIVE OF THE CITY’S HISTORICAL FACADES

LEVEL 1 ~THE TRAIN RIDE This game level consist of a long train track passing under a sequence of selected facades that are historically significant and representational of the city’s major era.

LEVEL 1 TRANSCRIPT ~THE TRAIN RIDE

STORYLINE: 1.The player boards the train from a fictional generic train station...

2.The train doors shut just shorty after the player enters...

3.The player is trapped within the confines of the cart, he is carried through a long tunnel...to a place unknown...

1

2

3

LEVEL 1 STORYLINE: 1.Eventually the tunnel ends and open up to a generic space with a series of weird looking encrypted surfaces...

2.As the train travels forward, each set of surface begin to form a meaningful facade, that is an optometric recreation of one of central’s historical facade...

3.The surfaces are static, but owing to the player’s position, they come into form as he approaches the prescribed point of “zero distortion”...

4.As the player passes by each set of building facades, they dissolve optometrically behind the player, into a series of encryped surfaces again...

LEVEL 1

LEVEL 1

LEVEL 1

LEVEL 2

TRACING SUNYATSEN’S FOOTSTEP

LEVEL 2.

TRACING SUNYATSEN’S FOOTSTEP

This game level consist of a spatial sequence of optometric built forms where players are guided forward by finding the points of “zero distortion”. At those points, the player is rewarded with a new tip for proceeding forward.

The sequence of optometric sets are made up of Historical buildings in central where the 1911 revolutionist, Sun-Yat-Sen had once lived, worked or used for the purpose of planning for the overthrow of the Chinese Qing government. The sequence tells the story of events leading up to the 1911 revolution that ended the Qing dynasty in China.

LEVEL 2

TRACING SUNYATSEN’S FOOTSTEP

OVERALL FRONT ELEVATION OF GAME STAGE SET

LEVEL 2 TRANSCRIPT TRACING SUNYATSEN’S FOOTSTEP

Level 2 begins with the player stranded on the Blake pier on conaught road. This was where the shoreline used to be in 1911. The Blake pier is named after Sir Henry Arthur Blake, the twelfth governor of Hong Kong. Here, the player begins his journey in tracing Dr. Sun Yat Sen’s footsteps...

1

2

3

4

The player moves through Blake pier, towards Connaught road junction. The encrypted facade began to dycrpt themselves as the player approaches the “focal point� of the anamorphic facades.

Here the player will be greeted with the Kings building on his left. This is where Charter House is currently located. Following the Praya reclamation of 1890–1904, the Kings’ building was constructed and opened in 1905, that served as offices of Canadian Pacific Ocean Services (G/F) and Hong Kong, Canton & Macao Steamboat Company (1/F).

Further down connaught road to the left, there is the St George building and Queen’s building. Queen’s Building was viewed as one of the finest examples of Neoclassical architecture in Hong Kong, so much so that it was labelled “the city’s most prestigious commercial building” when it opened.[1] It was four storeys high and featured porticos, balconies and arches,[1] topped off with a small cupola.[5] It primarily housed a vast array of shipping, insurance and trading corporations from Europe,[6] and the entrance of Queen’s Building became a popular stop for rickshaws and sedan chairs.

On the right, lays the Old Central General Post office. Completed in 1911 and demolished in 1976, the GPO it had been the headquarters of the Hong Kong Post service, serving the public and maintaining close communication with postal administrations around the world for 65 years.

As the player moves away from the “focal point�, the Connaught road facades dissolves and return to its encrypted form

The player is then hinted to go up the General Post office delivery tower and link bridge, which was used by Post office staff to transport incoming and outgoing post articles to and fro postal ships. The player takes the stairs up the delivery tower and travels into the Post office via the link bridge. At the Post office delivery hall, the player is rewarded with crate A, one of the 4 crates that the player has to collect in order to proceed to the next level. Upon collecting crate A, he is prompted to tune the clock that is programmed to move the next set of anamorphic facades into place.

As the anamorphic facades shuffles into place, the player is given the hint for the way forward. He then comes to the facade of the post office facing Pedder Street. Across pedder street lies the 1911 facade of the kings Building.

The ephemeral Kings Building Facade dissolves as soon as the player moves away...

The player is being lead to the elevated pedestrian bridge linking Chartered House and World Wide House today. Here the player has to active the clock again so that the anamorphic forms forming the 1911 Des Vox Road facades move into place.

A bridge then unlocks which allow the player to travel from Charterd House to Alexandra House. On the 2nd floor of the Alexandra house, the player will find Crate C.

Crate C contains a map that hints the player at proceeding to the Hong Kong Hotel via the Des Vox Road Bridge....

Upon entering the 1911 Hong Kong Hotel, the player proceeds to the Hotel reception hall where he finds Crate B. Along side Crate B, the player is given control of the water gates that is flooding pedder street. The player dials the controls and Pedder street is drained of water.

With Pedder Street drained, the player is free to move across the road to the Jardine Matheson House, where he will find Crate D. At Crate D, the player also finds the control to unlocking the door to the Pedder Street clock tower...

The player proceeds to the Pedder Street clock tower, where he climbs up the clocks’ stairs to the main clocks controls. Here he has reached the end of level 2. He then dials the clock, moving time forward and bringing him to level 3...1967

With Pedder Street drained, the player is free to move across the road to the Jardine Matheson House, where he will find Crate D. At Crate D, the player also finds the control to unlocking the door to the Pedder Street clock tower...

LEVEL 2

TRACING SUNYATSEN’S FOOTSTEP

LEVEL 2

TRACING SUNYATSEN’S FOOTSTEP

LEVEL 3

1967 RIOT ~WITNESSING UPHEAVALS

LEVEL3 WITNESSING UPHEAVALS This game level reenact the sequence of events that took place during the 1967 riot in Hong Kong.

Downtown central was one of the many places where major violent demostrations and clashes between police and protestors happened.

The game environment is composed of a sequence of optometric buildings, pathways, hotel rooms and viewports that together, narrates the major events that took place in downtown central during the 1967 riot.

LEVEL 3

1967 RIOT ~WITNESSING UPHEAVALS

LEVEL 3 TRANSCRIPT 1967 RIOT ~WITNESSING UPHEAVALS

Level 3 begins with the player inside the murray house building (relocated in 2000]. The murray house houses the government office and the game requires the player to searchfor evidence of corruption of Chief Superintendent of the Royal Hong Kong Police Force, Peter Godber.

This part of the game level narrates the prevalent corruption in the colonial Hong Kong officialdom in the 1960s as one of the underlying tensions that lead to the 1967 leftist riot in Hong Kong. The riot was also precipated by tensions heightened by the ongoing cutlrual revolution in mainland China. In this level, the player is guided by a rope on the ground which would eventually lead him through the entire narrative game space.

Occasionally, if the player departs from the designated route indicated by the rope, he would discover “easter eggs� or surprises.

THE MURRAY HOUSE PUZZLE

After accomplishing the tasks of collecting criminal evidence in Murray House against corrupted government officials, the player is prompted to proceed to the Hilton Hotel (Demolished in 1995). The Hilton Hotel is the prime location for some of the bigger riots in 1967.

The Hilton hotel became a strong hold for police to counter the congregation of anti-colonial protestors in Central. It is also located directly opposite the older Bank of China building at 2A Des Voeux Road Central, which was used by communist militia from mainland china as a staging area for organising protests and armed confrontations.

HILTON HOTEL & BANK OF CHINA ANAMORPHIC ENCRYPTION As the player approaches the Hilton Hotel, the game’s anamorphic stage sets mobilises to form the aerial perspective of the demolished Hilton Hotel building, at approximately the route the player is taking. Proceeding closer to the hotel, prompts the game algorithim to swtich the anamorphic sets to transform back into the elevational front facade of the Hilton Hotel.

The player then enters through the front foyer of the Hitlon hotel representation...

Upon entering the hotel entrance, the player is greeted by an anamorphic reconstruction of the Hotel’s main foyer and ground floor elevator lobby. The anamorphic reconstruction breaks down as the player departs from the “point of zero distortion” and realises only one of the many elevator doors are physically real. He then enters that elevator and goes up the Hotel...

There is only physically real elevator door, among the many anamorphic illusions.

The lift opens up to the 15th floor of the hotel and the player is confronted with two hotel corriors, one lit up and the other dark and gloomy. If the player chooses the gloomy route, he would eventually come to a door that says “warning spoiler ahead! Developer’s area, do not open”.

This door is designed as a pseudo “escape” from the game space, allowing the player to enter a walkway that escapes from the designated play route. If the player proceeds further down the walkway, he would eventually escape the black box bounding the play area and get an overall view of the spaces and anamorphic sets he just went through. In this sense, the greater “truth” or “behind the scenes” of the built environment is revealed to the player.

Main Narrative Route

Side Quest

The lift opens up to the 15th floor of the hotel and the player is confronted with two hotel corriors, one lit up and the other dark and gloomy. If the player chooses the gloomy route, he would eventually come to a door that says “warning spoiler ahead! Developer’s area, do not open”.

This door is designed as a pseudo “escape” from the game space, allowing the player to enter a walkway that escapes from the designated play route. If the player proceeds further down the walkway, he would eventually escape the black box bounding the play area and get an overall view of the spaces and anamorphic sets he just went through. In this sense, the greater “truth” or “behind the scenes” of the built environment is revealed to the player.

If the player takes the lighted-up route in the previous junction, he will be confronted with a corridor that looks normal at first sight. However as he proceeds down the corridor, he find himself turning smaller and smaller in size. In actual fact, the player didn’t shrink. Instead it was an illusion propagate by the form of the corridor. In section, the corridor enlarges slowly, yet such an illusion is not visible at the beginning of the corridor as the corridor has been distorted anamorphically.

Exploring the Micro-world Player appears smaller as he proceeds along the distorted corridor. The built environment creats an illusion in scale which gives the narrative a twist and allows the player to probe into a world of s different scale

At the end of the corridor, the player is so small relative to his environment that he is now the size of an ant. He comes to a room where the door is slightly opened with a gap. The player proceeds into the room via the narrow gap and enters the mega-sized room. Here he sees the a legendary photograph taken in 1967 along Connaught Road, during the leftist riot. The image depicts protestors outside the old central post office confronting police. The player is then lead by the rope up onto the mega-size table...

However, if the player opt to depart from the rope and proceed to the door below the table, he will again come to another “developer zone�. This time, he will get a glimpse of the game routes up ahead instead.

1

As the player proceeds along the rope, he comes to the top of the desk and sees a note narrating what happen in the 1967 riot, and what was witnessed from the Hilton hotel room. The player then sees a ladder next to the paper and of course, the only logical option would be for him to climb up the later and come to the top of a cardboard box....

On the top of the cardboard box, the player is given an unobstructed view of the room’s only window. Here the player is positioned at a pavilion where he can clearly see the photo that was mounted on the wall.

Focal Point in Hotel Room

The anamorphic surfaces began to shift again, and the original image of Connaught Road dissolves.

Another set of anamorphic surfaces shuffles into place and forms the junction between Queens road and Des Vox Road in 1967...

Here the old Beaconsfield House (now CKC tower) is visible from the junction. The Beaconsfield houses the information services deparment in 1967. Opposite the Beanconsfield house is the old bank of China building that is still standing today. During the riots of 1967, communist milita used the bank of China building as a propaganda broadcasting station to broadcast readings from the Mao’s little red book. In response the British colonial government broadcaster Beatles music from the Beanconsfield house’s speaker systems.

All of a sudden, the anamorphic sets outside the window starts to move into position...The anamorphic surfaces eventually comes to a rest and forms a similliar image to the one mounted on the wall.

This is the image of Connaught Road in 1967, depicting it is like looking at the demolished central post office.

The old Beaconsfield House (now CKC tower) is visible from the junction. The Beaconsfield houses the information services deparment in 1967. Opposite the Beanconsfield house is the old bank of China building that is still standing today. During the riots of 1967, communist milita used the bank of China building as a propaganda broadcasting station to broadcast readings from the Mao’s little red book. In response the British colonial government broadcaster Beatles music from the Beanconsfield house’s speaker systems.

The player then proceeds down the ladder, back on to the wooden desk. He is confronted with a picture frame showing the image he just saw through the anamorphic forms. However, now he suddenly realise there is a door in the photo, he proceeds to open the door and...

Upon going through the door, the player is teleported to another space where he see the anamorphic set of the Beaconsfield building. The player is literally inside the photo and he sees the guiding rope unwinding ahead of him. He then proceeds along the rope to find out what awaits for him...

The Beaconsfield building dissolves into its encrypted form as the player follows the rope and departs from the “point of zero distortion”. He then comes to a stairway with a door saying “Chapter 3 Beaconsfield window”. Of course the player trusts the text on the door fully, and he proceeds through the door up the building...

Here he is presented with another room. He enters the room and found two photos framed on the wall. In fact, the room he just enter is yet another pavilion to view anamorphic sets. The anamorphic forms outside the window shuffles just like the previous room, and a view of Des Vox Road is formed.

The 3rd generation HSBC building is visible in the view as an anamorphic distortion. This was the HSBC building that was in service during the 1967 riots. Hundreds of angry protestors congregated infront of the building during the upheavals and it was a significant target of attack from protestors.

LEVEL 3

1967 RIOT ~WITNESSING UPHEAVALS

LEVEL 3

1967 RIOT ~WITNESSING UPHEAVALS

LEVEL 3

1967 RIOT ~WITNESSING UPHEAVALS

LEVEL 3

1967 RIOT ~WITNESSING UPHEAVALS

LEVEL 4

MULTIPLE CITIES IN ONE THE ELEVATED PEDESTRIAN WALK WAY AS ~AN ARCHIVE OF THE CITY’S HISTORICAL FACADES

LEVEL4.

AN ARCHIVE OF THE CITY’S HISTORICAL FACADES

Level 4 is a real intervention onto the central evelated pedestrian walkway system. The design consist of a sequence of optometric interventions inserted strategically to take advantage of the different viewports provided by walkway system.

Each set of optometric intervention overlays the historical version of a building facade in central, such that when pedestrians approaches the “point of zero distortion”, the historical facade that no longer exisit, is gradually formed optometrically infront of the pedestrian’s eyes. As he moves away from the point “point of zero distortion”, the ephemeral historical facades also dissolves in perspective and return to an “encrypted” form.

The cityscaled intervention creates an archive of historical facades on the pedestrian walkway system, narrating the history of downtown central.

AN ELEVATED BRIDGE NETWORK PAVILION LOOKING INTO THE PAST OF CENTRAL

The series of Perspective Sets and Mirrors superimpose the old central facade-scapes ionto the the current central cityscape. Pedestrians walking through the elevated bridge networks would experience a timejourney of Central.

Each set of optometric intervention overlays the historical version of a building facade in central, such that when pedestrians approaches the “point of zero distortion”, the historical facade that no longer exisit, is gradually formed optometrically infront of the pedestrian’s eyes. As he moves away from the point “point of zero distortion”, the ephemeral historical facades also dissolves in perspective and return to an “encrypted” form.

X

Y

WORLD WIDE HOUSE & CHARTER BUILDING DECONSTRUCTED INTO

OLD CENTRAL POST OFFICE UNION BUILDING KINGS BUILDING

art

1.xxxx 2.xxxx

inear Storyline

evel 1

3.xxxx 4.xxxx

5.xxxx 6.xxxx

7.xxxx 8.xxxx

9.xxxx

End

Door lead to Level2

Blake Pier CRATE 3

Union Building

Level 2

Change in scale of environment

CRATE 2

Post Office

CRATE 1

HongKong Hotel

CRATE 3

HongKong Hotel

Dead end

Jadine Matheson

Clock Tower

Dead end

12

CRATE 4

Jadine Matheson

CRATE 1

Alexodra House Lift Lobby

Lift B

Lift A

Working in Progress

Police Station

Level 3

Hilton Hotel

Beaconsfield House

HSBC

GEN3

GEN2

Alexodra House

Landmark

Post Office 1967/05/22 Afternoon Garden Road

POST THESIS DESIGNS 2014 UMBRELLA MOVEMENT/ OCCUPY CENTRAL REINVENTED

日22月9

日62月9

日82月9

會集道大萬百，課罷

場廣民公入衝

線防方警破突 彈淚催，中道諾干出衝

日92月9

，鐘金領佔 灣鑼銅，角旺

日1月01

荊紫金圍包

日4月01

日7月01

日01月01

日31月01

日41月01

日12月01

日32月01

日82月01

夜黑角旺 會集力暴反

日3月01

穌耶，帝關

篷帳一人一

子漢真安職 泥水，棚竹

角暗

話對府政、聯學

rennab山子獅

傘撐體集月滿

報海告警面雙

日22月9

日62月9

日82月9

會集道大萬百，課罷

場廣民公入衝

線防方警破突 彈淚催，中道諾干出衝 報海告警面雙

日92月9

，鐘金領佔 灣鑼銅，角旺

日1月01

荊紫金圍包

日4月01

日7月01

日01月01

日31月01

日41月01

日12月01

日32月01

日82月01

夜黑角旺 會集力暴反

日3月01

穌耶，帝關

篷帳一人一

子漢真安職 泥水，棚竹

角暗

話對府政、聯學

rennab山子獅

傘撐體集月滿

2014 UMBRELLA MOVEMENT/OCCUPY CENTRAL ADMIRALTY GOVERNMENT OFFICE & OCCUPIED HARCOURT ROAD 2014 SEPTEMBER

POST THESIS DESIGNS

REENACTING 2014 UMBRELLA MOVEMENT TEMPORARY OCCUPATION BUILT ENVIRONMENT

LEVEL 3 PROTESTORS RAISING UMBRELLAS ON HARCOURT ROAD ADMIST POLICE TEAR GAS MEASURES. - THE UMBRELLA HAVE SINCE BECOME A SYMBOL FOR DEFENDING THE RULE OF LAW, FREEDOM & UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE IN HONG KONG.

POLICE’S RELEASE OF TEAR GAS AGAINST PEACEFUL PROTESTORS BECAME THE TURNING POINT OF THE MOVEMENT, AS PEOPLE TOOK THE STREETS IN RESPONSE TO POLICE BRUTALITY AND USE OF EXCESSIVE FORCE. THE SCENE ALSO INVOKED MEMORIES OF THE TIANANMEN MASSACRE IN 1989, AS BEIJING CONTINUES TO CRACKDOWN ON DISSIDENTS

POST THESIS DESIGNS

REENACTING OLD DOWNTOWN CENTRAL

POST THESIS DESIGNS DOWNTOWN CENTRAL, APOCALYPTIC REINVENTION